Firebird USA LLC (formerly Firebird Skydiving GmbH and Firebird Sky Sports AG) is an American

parachute A parachute is a device used to slow the motion of an object through an atmosphere by creating drag or, in a ram-air parachute, aerodynamic lift. A major application is to support people, for recreation or as a safety device for aviators, who ...

manufacturer based in

Eloy, Arizona Eloy is a city in Pinal County, Arizona, United States, approximately northwest of Tucson and about southeast of Phoenix. According to the U.S. Census estimates in 2019, the population of the city is 19,625. History In 1880, as tracks were ...

. The company also has locations in Germany, Sri Lanka, and the Czech Republic, and was formerly based in

Füssen Füssen is a town in Bavaria, Germany, in the district of Ostallgäu, situated one kilometre from the Austrian border. The town is known for violin manufacturing and as the closest transportation hub for the Neuschwanstein and Hohenschwangau cast ...

and

Bitburg Bitburg (; french: Bitbourg; lb, Béibreg) is a city in Germany, in the state of Rhineland-Palatinate approximately 25 km (16 mi.) northwest of Trier and 50 km (31 mi.) northeast of Luxembourg city. The American Spangdahlem ...

, Germany. The company specializes in the design and manufacture of

s and at one time also constructed

paraglider Paragliding is the recreational and competitive adventure sport of flying paragliders: lightweight, free-flying, foot-launched glider aircraft with no rigid primary structure. The pilot sits in a harness or lies supine in a cocoon-like 'po ...

s and

parafoil kite Foil kites are soft Kite flying, kites based on the design of the parafoil. They consist of a number of cells running fore to aft, some or all of which are open at the front to allow air to inflate the kite so it takes on an airfoil, aerofoil sect ...

s.Bertrand, Noel; Rene Coulon; et al: ''World Directory of Leisure Aviation 2003–04'', p. 16. Pagefast Ltd, Lancaster UK, 2003.

Background

Firebird was founded as Performance Variable by Bernd Pohl in 1995. In 2017 skydivers Sara and Steve Curtis, and George Reuter purchased Firebird. After previously manufacturing its products in Germany and the Czech Republic, in 2018, the company moved its production facility to Eloy, Arizona, a city that has the world's biggest

drop zone A drop zone (DZ) is a place where parachutists or parachuted supplies land. It can be an area targeted for landing by paratroopers, or a base from which recreational parachutists and skydivers take off in aircraft and land under parachutes. In ...

. In the mid-2000s, as Firebird Sky Sports AG, the company produced a range of 11 different models of paragliders, including the beginner Firebird Sub-One and Z-One, the intermediate

Grid Grid, The Grid, or GRID may refer to: Common usage * Cattle grid or stock grid, a type of obstacle is used to prevent livestock from crossing the road * Grid reference, used to define a location on a map Arts, entertainment, and media * News g ...

and

Hornet Hornets (insects in the genus ''Vespa'') are the largest of the eusocial wasps, and are similar in appearance to their close relatives yellowjackets. Some species can reach up to in length. They are distinguished from other vespine wasps by th ...

, the competition Debute and

Tribute A tribute (; from Latin ''tributum'', "contribution") is wealth, often in kind, that a party gives to another as a sign of submission, allegiance or respect. Various ancient states exacted tribute from the rulers of land which the state conqu ...

as well as the two-place Choice Zip Bi, that incorporated

zipper A zipper, zip, fly, or zip fastener, formerly known as a clasp locker, is a commonly used device for binding together two edges of textile, fabric or other flexible material. Used in clothing (e.g. jackets and jeans), luggage and other Bag, ba ...

s to reduce its wing area. Once one of the world's leading manufacturers of paragliders, the company stopped producing them around 2013 to concentrate on parachutes for military and civil applications, along with reserve parachutes. Today, Firebird manufactures custom parachutes and related products, such as tandem rigs for parachutes, reserve parachutes, harness-and-container systems, and magnetic riser covers.

Products

Canopies

* FB Tandem * Rush Reserve * Quick 400 Reserve

Containers

* Evo * Evo Student * Evo Tandem

Aircraft

Summary of

paragliders Paragliding is the recreational and competitive adventure sport of flying paragliders: lightweight, free-flying, foot-launched Glider (aircraft), glider aircraft with no rigid primary structure. The pilot sits in a :wikt:harness, harness o ...

built by Firebird, introduced in the mid-2000s and since out of production: * Firebird Choice Zip Bi *

Firebird Debute The Firebird Debute is a German single-place paraglider that was designed and produced by Firebird Sky Sports AG of Füssen Füssen is a town in Bavaria, Germany, in the district of Ostallgäu, situated one kilometre from the Austrian borde ...

Firebird Grid The Firebird Grid is a German single-place, paraglider that was designed and produced by Firebird Sky Sports AG of Füssen in the mid-2000s. It is now out of production.Bertrand, Noel; Rene Coulon; et al: ''World Directory of Leisure Aviation 2 ...

Firebird Hornet The Firebird Hornet is a German single-place, paraglider that was designed and produced by Firebird Sky Sports AG of Füssen in the mid-2000s. It is now out of production.Bertrand, Noel; Rene Coulon; et al: ''World Directory of Leisure Aviatio ...

Firebird Hornet Sport The Firebird Hornet is a German single-place, paraglider that was designed and produced by Firebird Sky Sports AG of Füssen in the mid-2000s. It is now out of production.Bertrand, Noel; Rene Coulon; et al: ''World Directory of Leisure Aviation ...

* Firebird Sub-One * Firebird Tribute * Firebird Z-One

References

External links

* {{Firebird aircraft Aircraft manufacturers of Germany Parachuting in Germany Paragliders Manufacturing companies based in Arizona Parachuting in the United States Eloy, Arizona