Nova say the new EN-A Prion 3 is a wing for every occasion, from school use and mellow top-to-bottoms to cross-country flights.
Uncomplicated ground-handling, easy take-offs and a reassuringly high dampening around every axis are promised, as well as precise and agile turns and “amazingly high performance for a wing in this class”.
Nova say it’s a completely new design and a true 3-liner. The Prion 3 has 39 cells and a flat aspect ratio of 4.66 (3.3 projected).
Nova’s designer, Philipp Medicus, explains:
The PRION 3 is a fully-fledged paraglider, which has many of the technological features we use in the ION 3 and MENTOR 4: Smart Cells, Double 3D Shaping and a genuine three-line setup. The result is a wing suitable for top-to-bottoms, valley crossings or even FAI triangles – as well as being really fun to fly. Our aim was to build a wing that offers a great deal of safety, but which presents no limits to adventures.
To make life easier for its pilots, the Prion 3 has:
- Colour coded risers: red for left and green for right. This colour coding also features on the new Nova Altus harness and helps ensure you clip in the right way.
- Risers and lines follow the PMA recommended colour scheme: A = red, B = yellow, C = blue, brake = orange, stabilo line = green. All lines are fully sheathed and ‘big ears’ are clearly marked.
- Adjustable handles, developed in conjunction with the DHV, can be individually adjusted to any hand to make correct gripping easier.
- Lightweight interior but robust upper and lower sail to suit everyday school use.
It also has “funny-looking” Safety Wingtips, there to reduce the risk of locked-in spirals. Nova explain:
These are specially angled wing tips, which assist when exiting a spiral. When the brake pressure is reduced, the Prion 3 has a tendency to right itself to a normal flying attitude.
The Prion 3 is certified EN A in three sizes: Sizes S (75-100kg), M (90-110kg) and L (100-130kg) , with XS (58-85kg expected) to be certified shortly.
Sizes S and M will be ready for delivery from the beginning of April 2015, and L will be ready from the end of April. It is hoped the XS will be available by the end of May.
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