Registration Information 2024.
Page last updated 01/01/2024
Join us from the 18th – 23rd June 2024
Please read this page carefully before proceeding to the registration form. The following information is correct as as of publication date above, but may be subject to change so please keep checking regularly.
All British participants are advised that due to the requirements of our event insurance through the BHPA, Full Pilot (Power) membership of the BHPA is required.
For any non-BHPA pilots who wish to compete, but have appropriate level of experience, membership through the BHPA Alternative Entry scheme can be arranged in advance. Please contact the BHPA technical office for details
Discovery Challenge: no longer available in 2024
For 2024, the committee have decided to retire the descovery challenge. It has served a useful purpose in recent years to regenerate interest in Paramotor competitions in the UK, but we now feel that critical mass has been reached in the number of UK pilots engaging at the top level, and capable of competing in the full competition class. We encourage all pilots to develop their training in flying map-only, and join the main competition class.
2024 standard pilot entry fee: £120
This includes entry to the event, camping on site, an official competition T-shirt, and all printed competition flying maps. More specific details of this year’s championship are available here.
Published entry fees are valid if paid in advance up to 1 week before the first briefing. Fees paid after that date will incur a £20 ‘late entry’ surcharge. Payments will be taken through Paypal, linked via the registration form.
REFUNDS POLICY: if, after registering, you are no longer able to attend the championship, a full refund of fees will be made if the request is recieved prior to late entry cut-off date. We regret that after that date, no refunds will be possible, unless the comptition is officially cancelled by the organisation committee, in which case all pilot entry fees will be refunded. This will only happen if it is absolutely clear that weather conditions will prevent a valid championship from taking place.
Non-BHPA pilots:
The BHPA Alternative Entry scheme is designed specifically to allow pilots that have been trained outside of the BHPA to easily convert this training to a BHPA pilot rating without having to follow the full BHPA training course from the beginning. For any non-BHPA pilots wishing to compete, we can arrange with the BHPA to ensure that you have the opportunity to complete the Alternative Entry in advance of the championship, but you will need to contact us or the BHPA office in plenty of time before the championship. All you will require for this are to provide evidence of your flying experiences, for example through copies of your log book, IPPI card, ratings, licences or any other evidence of your flying ability; you must also sit a short exam with a BHPA club coach to prove that you know the relevant air law. We can arrange for you to take the exam at a club local to you in advance of the championship.
Please select the ‘non-BHPA Alternative Entry’ option on the registration form and we will contact you to make the arrangements. The cost for this is:
One year’s BHPA flying membership: £164
BHPA joining fee: £30 (this is waived if you are taking the Alternative Entry specifically to compete in the championship)
Rating issue fee: £10
We recognise that this is a large additional expense, and for this reason, the championship entry fee is halved for pilots wishing to enter the championship through taking the BHPA alternative entry route.
Foreign Pilots:
We welcome foreign pilots to the British Open Championship. You must provide confirmation that you hold valid 3rd party insurance in your home country which includes cover for competitive paramotoring in foreign countries, up to a value of £1.3m equivalent. You will be requested to upload a copy of your insurance policy during the registration process, and pay the standard competition entry fee.
For foreign pilots who are unable to arrange such insurance in their own countries, there is an option to purchase temporary memership of the BHPA for he duration of the event.
Free-flying pilots:
We regret that due to the size of the competition, the sensitivity of the site, and the risks associated with other local airspace users (helicopters), we will be unable to facilitate free flying by non-competitors during the championships at Manston Airport.
Marshals:
We need plenty of support from Marshals, but we also have a finite limit on budget in order to support the number we need to effectively run the champioships, and we must allocate the places we need preferentially to BHPA Members (due to insurance), and to those with most experience. For 2024, we request that interested marshals submit an ‘expression of interest’ form to us, after which Our chief marshal will be in touch to confirm marshal places allocated. Link to the form here
Spectators:
Spectators are welcome at the championship and there is no charge for daily visiting. If you want to camp on site we request a donation of £5 pppn towards the use of the infrastructure. There is no need for day visitors to register in advance, but if you are intending to camp on site, please use the same form linked below and select “spectator” option, so that we can factor in numbers.
Sponsors:
We welcome sponsors to join us throughout the event and camping on site is free to sponsors. Details of 2024 sponsorship packages are available through the official Sponsorship page.
Traders:
Trade stands at the trade show event on Saturday 22nd June are available. Traders wishing to host a stand should get in touch via the form on the official Sponsorship page – which will be published soon. You will be required to supply all your own materials, tables, etc, and demonstrate evidence of 3rd party liability insurance before you can exhibit.