Commuters sail to work on parachute wings

Commuters weary of traffic may find it a fanciful idea to travel by parachute gliding, but that is what a group of middle-age people are doing every day in Zhuzhou city in central Hunan province.

A local gliding club has more than a dozen members, between 30 and 50 years old, including government officials and company managers. Many choose to fly to work, Hunan-based Changzhutan Daily reported yesterday.

Equipment varies but can include a small motorized frame attached to a parachute-like sail or non-motorized hang-gliders that ride wind currents, usually after a rider jumps from a height.

One of the gliding commuters is Zeng Daxia, a sobriquet that sounds like "knight Zeng" in Chinese, a 42-year-old civil servant and a retired professional parachute jumper, the newspaper said. He is a senior member of a local glider club.

"After work, I would go to an open space along the Xiangjiang River and fly home directly," Zeng told the newspaper. "We love freedom. Our worries will blow away when we are flying."

Eight of the members frequently fly between home and work. Members sometimes fly together, sharing a very cool and efficient means of travel.

"I'm serious in the office but I become a different person once I put on my glider gear," Zeng said.

The gliders' story has made a headlines on many websites in China. A reader named Zhang Long noted, "The Chinese government is planning to open low-altitude air space to private aircraft. It's good timing for this paragliding sport."

While it may seem like a luxury sport, Zhong Bo, the club's coach, said gliding equipment can be had for 30,000 yuan (US$4,815), the paper said.

"Ten liters of octane 93 gasoline is enough for a three-hour flight and a round trip between Zhuzhou and the province's capital, Changsha, nearly 132 kilometers," Zhong added. Octane 93 gasoline is priced at 7.67 yuan a liter in Hunan.

Zhong also suggested that people should obtain certificates from the China Air Transport Association and General Administration of Sports before gliding.