of the powered parachute’s inertia and weight. The  lift decreases rapidly as the powered parachute’s for- ward speed is decreased, and the force on the landing  gear increases by the impact of touchdown. When the  descent stops, the lift will be zero, leaving the land- ing gear alone to carry both the powered parachute’s  weight and inertia force. Any time you have a hard  landing, inspect your landing gear, tires, and structure  to make sure there is no structural damage. ply full power and check the wing is LOC (lines free,  cells open, wing centered) since a hard landing can  collapse a ram-air wing. It would be extremely fool- ish to attempt a landing from a bad bounce since the  skill set that would allow a student to make a severe  bounce would not be up to the task of salvaging a bad  landing. When the powered parachute contacts the ground dur- ing landings, its vertical speed is instantly reduced to  zero. Unless provisions are made to slow this vertical  speed and cushion the impact of touchdown, the force  of contact with the ground may be so great it could  cause structural damage to the powered parachute.  Reductions in rapid descent rates are made through  throttle increases. Closer to the ground, additional  flare is applied before touchdown. When landing in a crosswind, there is a concern that  the wing will blow downwind during the after-land- ing roll. This is due to the fact that the wing is flexibly  attached to the cart. Anytime a powered parachute is rolling on the ground  in a crosswind condition, the upwind side of the para- chute is receiving a force that wants to push it down- wind.  The purpose of pneumatic tires, shock absorbing land- ing gears, and other devices is to cushion the impact  and to increase the time in which the powered para- chute’s vertical descent is stopped. Within a fraction  of a second, the powered parachute must be slowed  from a high rate of vertical descent to zero, without  damage. During this time, the landing gear together with  some aid from the lift of the ram-air wing must sup- ply whatever force is needed to counteract the force  If no correction is applied, it is possible that the upwind  side of the parachute will rise sufficiently to cause the  downwind side of the parachute to strike the ground.  If the wind and/or the forward motion of the powered  parachute is great enough, a rollover may result. It is  important for a pilot to remember that the parachute  should be flown or pulled to the ground right after  landing the cart. The cart and the parachute’s move- ments should be controlled together on the ground. Wing Blowing Over After Touchdown Hard Landing 11-13