Ill-wind blow for pilot

By Kath Gannaway
BECOMING a media event wasn’t even remotely on the mind of Warburton paraglider Paul Hansen when he launched off Mt Donna Buang on Friday afternoon.
But when an ill-wind blowing up from Bass Strait landed the 42-year-old 65 metres up in a towering mountain ash between Healesville and Warburton, the gamut of emergency services and media went into action.
Mr Hansen’s pet chihuahua Emma, his constant companion on his flights above the Yarra Valley, was with him.
It’s what news media regard as a “cracker yarn” – loads of human interest, an element of drama and a happy ending.
Recovered from his ordeal Mr Hansen told the Mail yesterday he was thankful but a bit embarrassed by the huge effort and the number of people – local police, specialist police search and rescue teams and local SES and CFA volunteers who had come to his aid.
He was also aware that the incident had brought criticism from some sections of the paragliding fraternity who are sensitive to any adverse publicity around the sport.
Reports which painted him as a ‘daredevil’ he said have not helped.
The chilling wind that Mr Hansen admits he misjudged is not the first ill-wind to blow his way. In 2000 he was diagnosed with cancer. Eighteen months ago he was advised the condition was terminal. Flying, he says, has given him the drive to keep going.
His only regret, he said, was that he had not realised his dream of flying.
Determined to make the most of his life he went to NSW to do the paragliding course with Australia’s best instructor.
“Man has always dreamed of flying and it’s as good as the dream … totally addictive,” he said.
“It is the most pure form of free flight, the one that gets you closest to the experience of soaring like an eagle.”
“Doing the course and feeling the experience of flying honestly did change my whole fight to survive.
“It inspired me to want badly to live longer to be able to fly more.
“It was such a transformative and powerful experience to realise that dream,” he said not in defence of a sport which he says is totally unforgiving in the face of human error but in some way to explain to those who spent five hours in the cold, dense bush on Friday night why flying is so important in his life.
Police at the scene on Friday night said Mr Hansen’s preparation had been paramount in locating him quickly and communicating with him throughout the almost five hour rescue.
A fully charged mobile phone, GPS and two-way radio were standard equipment on his flights. Although suffering from the prolonged cramped conditions and in pain having been without his pain-management medication for several hours, Mr Hansen said he was happy to be able to walk up the steep terrain to the waiting ambulance.
“I was relieved that they (his rescuers) saw that I had taken every precaution and was not just some daredevil wasting their time,” he said.
“But I was still pretty embarrassed about the size of the operation and the number of people who had to give up their Friday night to save me.”
Mr Hansen said repaying those efforts was upmost in his thoughts throughout the ordeal.
“I thought how can I pay back those guys with more than just a banal “thank you”. I wanted to give something more substantial.”
The intense media interest on Saturday morning provided the opportunity.
“I offered an exclusive interview and pictures from my camera in exchange for a $2000 donation to the Upper Yarra SES,” he said.
Channel Seven were quick to accept and Mr Hansen said the SES were to receive the donation yesterday (Monday).
While Mr Hansen said he did not want in any way to profit from the flight that went wrong, he said there may be other opportunities to sell his story.
“The only thing I want to do is get a new paraglider,” he said.
“Any money I get above that, no matter how much, will go to the SES.”