September 22, 2024
SOLD OUT for the 3rd and last time!
Hendrikus Bouwmeester (rik@flywithrick.com) has the plans and will be making them.

Bridles for aerotowing and static line towing are still available. See ordering page.

The light weight, low cost, sure fire, place anywhere Tow Release for Hang Gliders and Paragliders.

Your tow release MUST work every single time. The Linknife cuts the weaklink and you're off the towline. It's that simple. No looped rings or strings to hang up. No expensive, draggy cable hanging out in the breeze. And best of all, no surprises.

Here's how it works

Two stainless steel blades form a "V" which quickly and cleanly cut most anything that fits into the 3/16" slots, including perlon, towline, webbing and of course string weaklinks of any strength.

LINK: Video of Miller Stroud foot-launching his ATOS using 2 Linknife Releases with an over/under bridle.

The Linknife has received the National Aeronautic Association Safety Award. What an incredible honor!

What's so special about the Linknife?

• Tow force passes through it, not into it.
The amount of pull to activate is always the same. No matter how much force is on the towline, it always takes 4-5 pounds of pull to cut the weaklink. With all other bridles, the more tow force there is, the more strength needed to pull the release cord.

• Light weight
At a mere 1/4 ounce, there's not a lot of mass that could cause problems to the pilot in case of a snap-back due to a towline break.

• Small size
The Linknife is 2.5" long. This is quite a bit smaller than all other releases, so stowing it or placing it in optional positions is easy. No towline hardware - Less chance of injury to people and things on the ground, including the driver who reels in the line, and greatly reduced chance of snagging a line during retrieval.

• Designed for safety
From the small slots that prevent fingers from getting cut to the easily replaced O-ring, everything about the Linknife is about safety. It's up to you to use it properly and tow safely, of course.

• Flexible placement
Whatever style of towing you do, there's a place for the Linknife – on the glider, on the pilot, at the tow vehicle – for safety and reliability. It can also accommodate tubular webbing, perlon, towline... whatever will fit in the slots.

• Works at any angle
Easily rotates around the weaklink to align with any pull direction. The round shape is unaffected by the wind and won't rotate on its own.

• Low cost
At $20 each in the USA (plus $4.20 shipping to US), the Linknife is the least expensive, most trustworthy release available anywhere.

"In my opinion, the LINKNIFE is exceptionally brilliant! It is the best release I know about."
– Donnell Hewett
Towing pioneer, author of Skyting Criteria, inventor of the concept of towline tension sensing and designer of the Hewett Center-of-Mass bridle.

A 1/4" (6mm) thick steel ring or rapid link - as shown in the photo above - backs up the Linknife in Static Line Towing or setups where the Linknife requires an angular pull... smaller links can get caught in the slots. In this manner, the rapid link prevents the Linknife from cutting the bridle. For Aerotowing, where an optional main release position is at the keel, the rapid link may not be necessary as the direction of pull to activate is nearly perpendicular to the bridle.

No matter what type of towing you are doing – Aero, Payout, Static Line, foot, dolly or platform launched – there is a place for the Linknife. It cannot accidentally come off, so it's always there when you need it.

X-38 with parachute deployed NASA purchased Linknifes for use on the X-38 Space Station Lifeboat,(Video link) using four on each craft to cut away the chutes if there's a problem. The head engineer was amazed that the Linknife weighs a mere 1/4 ounce and has no moving parts except for the sliding O-ring. It was also used to cut away the parachute on landing in Project Stardust.

ORDER HERE

The Linknife can also be used as an emergency release at the tow vehicle when static line towing. More info and photos at this page on towing equipment.

DISCLAIMER: As with all aviation endeavors, your choice and use of equipment is totally up to you. It is assumed you are an experienced HG or PG tow pilot who is intimately familiar with the style of towing you will be doing. As such, YOU ASSUME ALL RISK AND LIABILITY in the use of the Linknife, as well as all other parts, functions and personnel involved in the towing and flight operations. If you do not have experience in towing, please contact an instructor for expert training. Trying to learn on your own can, and probably will, result in your injury and even death. Many pilots have paid the ultimate price so we may now tow as safely as never before possible. Please learn from their lessons.