Petra vs Sabre3

JYRO Petra · Performance Designs Sabre3 · Canopy explorer

Manufacturer facts side by side, with the source on every row. Nothing on this page says which canopy to choose or what wing loading to fly — that is a conversation for you, your canopy coach and your drop zone.

What differs — read from the data

Petra is made by JYRO; Sabre3 is made by Performance Designs.
Planform: Petra is listed as elliptical; Sabre3 as semi-elliptical.
Petra has 7 cells; Sabre3 has 9 cells.
Petra is cross-braced; Sabre3 is not.
Petra is listed in 55–89 sq ft; Sabre3 in 89–230 sq ft.
The listed size ranges overlap between 89 and 89 sq ft.
The manufacturers publish different systems: Performance Designs lists a maximum exit weight per skill category and size; JYRO lists a recommended wing-loading range and a chart with jump-number bands. They are shown side by side, never translated into each other.

Structural facts only (manufacturer, planform, cells, bracing, sizes, chart system). How each wing flies is described below in the manufacturer's own words; how it flies for you is a question for a canopy coach.

Side by side

	Petra	Sabre3
Manufacturer	JYRO	Performance Designs
Status	current	current
Cells	7	9
Planform	elliptical	semi-elliptical
Cross-braced	yes	no
Aspect ratio	not published	2.59
Sizes (sq ft)	55–89 · custom sizes available Source: JYRO — Petra product page (page modified 2026-09-15) ↗	89–230 Source: Performance Designs — Sabre3 Flight Characteristics and FAQ (FC-0005 Rev. 0) ↗
Designed for (manufacturer wording)	Experienced competitive canopy pilots with thousands of jumps on small, highly loaded crossbraced canopies (competition-specific) Source: JYRO — Petra product page (page modified 2026-09-15) ↗	Novice to Intermediate skydivers at moderate wing loads Advanced to Expert skydivers at moderate to heavier wing loads Learning or perfecting high performance canopy piloting (under appropriate supervision) Source: Performance Designs — SABRE3 product page (incl. TABLE-0150 Rev.0 footnotes) (TABLE-0150 Rev.0 (chart)) ↗
Characteristics (manufacturer keywords)	Firm but not hard openings · Highly sensitive toggles and harness · Very long, steep dive · Long recovery requiring pilot input for level flight · High-speed stalls possible with abrupt inputs Source: JYRO — Petra product page (page modified 2026-09-15) ↗	Long recovery arc · Progressive & manageable front risers · Steep glide · Spectacular rear riser performance · Powerful bottom-end flare · Redesigned and refined openings Source: Performance Designs — SABRE3 product page (incl. TABLE-0150 Rev.0 footnotes) (TABLE-0150 Rev.0 (chart)) ↗
Opening	Firm but not hard; brisk when terminal (JYRO).	Comfortable snivel that doesn't eat up a lot of altitude; smooth, well-staged, on-heading openings across a wide range of wing loadings (FC-0005).
Recovery arc	Long recovery — requires pilot input for level flight (JYRO).	Long recovery arc (product page); natural recovery comparable to the Sabre2, and a higher wing loading generally makes it longer (FC-0005).
Glide	High maximal glide ratio (JYRO).	Steep glide (product page); 'it glides longer, it swoops farther' than the Sabre2 (FC-0005).
Speed / dive	Very long, steep dive; 'the most high performance wing you can buy' (JYRO) — no airspeed figures published.	Carries more speed than the Sabre2; builds speed with less input (qualitative — no airspeed figures published).
Flare	Very powerful and responsive (JYRO).	Powerful bottom-end flare; longer control range; stall point fairly deep for most jumpers (FC-0005).
Front risers	Very light (JYRO).	'A little goes a long way'; pressure similar to the Sabre2 but more uniform (FC-0005).
Rear risers	Range, range and more range; very responsive (JYRO).	PD: more power and wider range on rears than its other 9-cells, incl. the Sabre2 (FC-0005).
Harness response	Highly sensitive (JYRO).	A bit more responsive in the harness than its predecessor without being too sensitive during deployment (FC-0005).
Toggle response	Highly sensitive; high-speed stalls possible with abrupt inputs (JYRO).	Longer control range, more linear feel, crisp response (FC-0005).
Loading system	Recommended wing-loading range 2.5–3.0+ lb/ft² plus a chart with jump-number bands (below).	Maximum exit weight per PD skill category and size (chart below).
Manufacturer-stated experience requirements	700+ jumps at WL 2.2 or above 250+ jumps in the last 12 months Reference from a respected coach/swooper or Petra/Peregrine pilot Competed at least once in the last 12 months (or 3+ Open competitions in the last 3 years)	none stated
Evidence level	B — Manufacturer product information	A — Manufacturer technical documentation

Flight wording is quoted or closely paraphrased from each manufacturer's own documents; where a manufacturer publishes nothing for a row it says "not published". No airspeed figures are published by either manufacturer.

Your wing loading on each size

Exit weight (you + all gear): kg

Enter an exit weight to see exit weight ÷ size for every listed size of both canopies and where each number sits on the manufacturer's own chart.

Wing loading = exit weight (lb) ÷ size (ft²). PD's chart lists the MAXIMUM exit weight per skill category — the category shown is the lowest one whose maximum covers your weight, by PD's own rule. JYRO's range is a manufacturer envelope, not a target. The two systems are never translated into each other.

The manufacturers' charts

Petra — JYRO wing-loading chart

Recommended wing-loading range: 2.5–3.0+ lb/ft² Source: JYRO — Petra product page (page modified 2026-09-15) ↗

22 chart cells (exit weight × size → wing loading), colour bands = minimum jump numbers: 2000+ jumps · 2200+ jumps · 1800+ jumps · 1600+ jumps · 2600+ jumps · 2400+ jumps · 2800+ jumps

Source: JYRO — Petra wing-loading chart (image) (WL_Chart_V4) ↗

Sabre3 — Performance Designs chart: maximum exit weight (lb) per category

Size	Student	Novice	Intermediate	Advanced	Expert	Maximum (never exceed)
89	N/S	N/S	N/S	N/S	160	178
97	N/S	N/S	N/S	136	175	194
107	N/S	N/S	N/S	150	193	214
120	N/S	N/S	120	168	216	240
135	N/S	108	149	203	236	250
150	N/S	127	173	225	240	260
170	127	152	196	238	255	281
190	152	180	209	247	266	285
210	168	210	221	252	273	294
230	184	230	242	253	276	299

N/S = not suggested by the manufacturer for that category. Weights are maximums, not recommendations.

Source: Performance Designs — Sabre3 Wing Loading Chart (product page) (TABLE-0150 Rev.0) ↗

Sources

B JYRO — Petra product page (page modified 2026-09-15) — open ↗
B JYRO — Petra wing-loading chart (image) (WL_Chart_V4) — open ↗
A Performance Designs — Sabre3 Flight Characteristics and FAQ (FC-0005 Rev. 0) — open ↗
B Performance Designs — SABRE3 product page (incl. TABLE-0150 Rev.0 footnotes) (TABLE-0150 Rev.0 (chart)) — open ↗
B Performance Designs — Sabre3 Wing Loading Chart (product page) (TABLE-0150 Rev.0) — open ↗

Evidence levels: A = manufacturer technical documentation, B = manufacturer product information. Knowledge base version canopy-kb-2026.09.23-r3. All sources used on this site

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