Broken Carabiners in Brasil
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The DHV has received two broken AustiAlpin Parafly Automatic carabiners from a Brasilian pilot.
Both carabiners show surface damage indicating that they have been used for purposes other than flying, and the information regarding usage cannot be indepentendtly verified.
AustriAlpin gives the maximum lifespan of these carabiners as 350 hours of usage.
These carabiners were manufactured between 1999 and 2001. The following pictures indicate breakage due to metal fatigue followed by overloading.
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(click picture to enlarge)
The DHV recommends the following:
Should carabiners show signs of damage or no longer function correctly (e.g. the gate does not close properly), then these carabiners should be exchanged immediately. Before take-off a visual check must verify that carabiners are correcly installed and closed - independant of the manufacturer of the carabiner. Carabiner lifespans as documented by their manufacturers are only relevant for undamaged and fully functional carabiners.
More information on carabiners can be found on the DHV website.
The DHV recommends, as stated in several previous publications, for pilots of both hang- and paragliders the use of steel carabiners due to increased lifespan and loading properties.
More information (german)
Safety notes for carabiners
