The lively Mistral2 - as reviewed by Greg Hamerton.

First there was the SWING Arcus, the Basic-Intermediate winner (DHV1/2), then the Astral2, a stable Intermediate (DHV2), and now the Mistral2, released as a 'Basic-Intermediate' (DHV1/2) and thus competing with two, very similar sisters. Where does the Mistral2 fit in? I spent a few hours in thermic and soaring conditions to find out.

LAUNCH : An easy pullup, great for zero wind starts. The wing will even come up without using the A-risers, demonstrating that it has no 'hardpoints' or tendancy to hang back. It kites a little forwards of overhead, wanting to fly, so a small dab on the brakes is needed to catch it on a steeper launch slope. I like this in a glider, because it allows a short takeoff run.

HANDLING : Unlike the Astral2 battle-cruiser, the Mistral2 is a responsive, playful wing. It gives a lot of feedback, so you feel most of the changing air currents as they ripple over the aerofoil. This is useful for thermalling, but might unnerve a low-airtime pilot who is not yet ready for the added information. The brake pressure is moderate, and doesn't increase much to stall point. The Mistral2 turns well on the brakes alone, and when combined with weight-shift it can easily be turned tight, flat, or banked over, giving the pilot a good range of choices. The sink rate is very good, and I could stay up where other pilots were struggling. It has the best handling out of all the Swing's I've flown (Arcus, Astral, Astral2, Mistral, Ventus, Ventus2, Cirrus2).

SPEED : The Mistral2 is trimmed fairly slowly, cruising at the same speed as the Arcus (33-34km/h). Full speed bar is as far as the wing can go - the nose began to crumple / deform in cold, smooth air. It's not quite as fast as the Astral2, reaching only 45km/h during my test flights, although I could have carried a bit more weight before reaching the upper weight limit and attained a slightly higher speed (2-3 km/h). In general, I believe the Swing gliders should be flown towards the top end of their weight range to get the optimum performance, though the handling will tend to get heavier (more brake pressure). Against a Serial-class racer the Mistral lost ground at full speed (about 5km/h slower, and a slightly worse glide) but the difference was small. The Mistral will be very competitive against others in the DHV1/2 class.

SECURITY : Asymmetric collapses bang out before the wing has turned through 90 degrees - a rapid, spontaneous reinflation and very reassuring to my critical eye. Big asymmetrics (more than 50%) result in a dive and turn if you provide no countersteering, but the wing reinflates well before 180 degrees, without much height loss. If you're on full speedbar, it's a different story, but that is to be expected from any accelerated wing. Release the speedbar (or you'll spiral downwards with a collapse) and the Mistral2 swings out and reinflates on its own.

B line stalls are easy, but must be held in quite deeply (pull far down on the B's) or the wing tries to fly out straight away. It has no tendancy to linger in a stall, and regains flying speed easily from front-tucks, deep stalls, and B-lines. It is not particularly resistant to spinning if you fly slowly and then haul down on one brake, but it recovers from this abuse without much of a surge if you release the spin when you realise your mistake. If held in more than 90 degrees, the spin rotates very quickly, and the wing dives far forwards to recover. If you're prone to being very heavy-handed, then the stiff handling of the Astral2 might better suit your nature. For most pilots, it has struck a good balance between responsiveness and stability.

CONSTRUCTION : The Mistral2 has used 'inverted-V' tapes instead of the Astral2's 'U-tapes', which means there is an unbraced cell every three. These bracing tapes are short, and are placed on the A and C hangpoints only, which keeps the wing light. A wide tape along the D-hangpoints provides spanwise reinforcement. The speedbar travel is the normal Swing-riser 19cm, with the standard double pulley system. Split A-risers ensure easy descents with 'big-ears'. (If you're like me, you'll find the brake-handles too stiff for comfort, but a small slit in the inside curve of the fabric frees the plastic rod within.)

SUMMARY : The Mistral2 is well-suited to the regular weekender or the eager newcomer to cross-country flying. It is not recommended as a first glider - that is the role of the Arcus. Rather, I'd say it is for a pilot with a minimum of 80 flights or 20 hours experience, someone who wants sensitivity combined with stability, someone who wants to get more out of their thermalling and flying experience. It is a pleasure to fly.

If you're an experienced xc pilot you'll enjoy the handling, but you might be able to manage something with a bit more Zing in the speed department for those into-wind glides and valley crossings.

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS : Swing Paragliders - www.swing.de
South African Distributor - Peter Wallenda - 083 300 1755

* Note : Multiply by the correction factor to scale the results to a standardised condition of 1000m altitude, 1013.2 hPa Qnh pressure, and 15 deg.C. air. (assumed roughly 6% increase in speed per 1000m, 2% increase per 5degrees C)