Stiletto vs Valkyrie

Performance Designs Stiletto · Performance Designs Valkyrie · 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

Stiletto and Valkyrie are both made by Performance Designs.
Planform: both are listed as elliptical.
Stiletto has 9 cells; Valkyrie has 7 cells.
Valkyrie is cross-braced; Stiletto is not.
Stiletto is listed in 89–190 sq ft; Valkyrie in 67–111 sq ft.
The listed size ranges overlap between 89 and 111 sq ft.
Published aspect ratio: Stiletto 2.68, Valkyrie 2.84.
Both charts list Performance Designs' maximum exit weight per skill category and size — the same size can be read in both tables below.

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

	Stiletto	Valkyrie
Manufacturer	Performance Designs	Performance Designs
Status	current	current
Cells	9	7
Planform	elliptical	elliptical
Cross-braced	no	yes
Aspect ratio	2.68	2.84
Sizes (sq ft)	89–190 Source: Performance Designs — Stiletto product page ↗	67–111 Source: Performance Designs — Valkyrie product page ↗
Designed for (manufacturer wording)	Intermediate to Experienced jumpers Getting back from long spots Individuals looking for a fun-to-fly canopy with responsive handling Source: Performance Designs — Stiletto product page ↗	HIGHLY experienced cross-braced canopy pilots Expert canopy pilots Getting back from long spots Camera flyers Terminal and Sub-terminal deployments Individuals looking for a high performance canopy for competition Individuals who have mastered their current cross-braced canopy and are looking for the next step in performance Source: Performance Designs — Valkyrie product page ↗
Characteristics (manufacturer keywords)	Flat glide · Short recovery arc · Extremely responsive toggle input Source: Performance Designs — Stiletto product page ↗	NOT intended as a first cross-braced canopy · Highly responsive to all inputs · Powerful rear riser performance · Great stopping power/shut down · Smooth openings Source: Performance Designs — Valkyrie product page ↗
Opening	When propacked, the canopy opens very soft, and somewhat snively. It is somewhat sensitive to body position during inflation, but opens generally on heading.	Openings smooth, well-staged and with less tendency to search for a heading during inflation.
Recovery arc	Short recovery arc (product page). FC: the Stiletto tends to stay in a steep dive for a long time after several high speed turns.	not published
Glide	Slightly flatter glide angle at full glide than the Sabre; flight in brakes is a fairly slow, very floaty, flat glide.	Very efficient in converting speed into lift; even better than a Comp Velocity at getting you back from long spots.
Speed / dive	Slightly faster than a Sabre (qualitative only; no airspeed figures published).	Higher speeds in a dive (qualitative; no figures published).
Flare	Less forgiving of overflaring, since its stall is sharper (than Sabre); slightly shorter control range than a Sabre.	Highly responsive to toggle input and has a powerful flare; stopping power is impressive.
Front risers	Tends to front riser to a higher airspeed, but not at quite as steep an angle as a Sabre; slightly slower turn rate on front risers, but airspeed and rate of descent build up faster.	Front riser pressure slightly higher than a Comp Velocity, but it wants to rotate, and rotate fast; potential for faster and more powerful turns.
Rear risers	not published	More power and a wider range on rears than on the Comp Velocity.
Harness response	Very responsive to harness movements during deployment.	Much more sensitive to harness input than a Comp Velocity; rolls into turns almost effortlessly.
Toggle response	Rolls into a toggle turn much faster than a Sabre; continues to turn as it slowly rolls out of a fast turn.	Highly responsive to toggle input.
Loading system	Maximum exit weight per PD skill category and size (chart below).	Maximum exit weight per PD skill category and size (chart below).
Manufacturer-stated experience requirements	none stated	none stated
Evidence level	A — Manufacturer technical documentation	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

Stiletto — 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	107	138	160
97	N/S	N/S	N/S	116	150	175
107	N/S	N/S	N/S	128	171	193
120	N/S	N/S	126	150	198	204
135	N/S	N/S	155	169	223	230
150	N/S	128	173	188	233	255
170	N/S	153	196	213	255	272
190	N/S	181	219	238	266	285

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

Source: Performance Designs — Stiletto sizing / wing-loading chart (PD website Stiletto Wing Loading Chart, TABLE-0176 REV.0) ↗

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

Size	Student	Novice	Intermediate	Advanced	Expert	Maximum (never exceed)
67	N/S	N/S	N/S	N/S	161	188
71	N/S	N/S	N/S	N/S	170	199
75	N/S	N/S	N/S	N/S	180	210
79	N/S	N/S	N/S	142	190	221
84	N/S	N/S	N/S	151	202	235
90	N/S	N/S	N/S	162	216	252
96	N/S	N/S	N/S	173	230	269
103	N/S	N/S	N/S	185	247	288
111	N/S	N/S	N/S	200	266	310

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

Source: Performance Designs — Valkyrie sizing / wing-loading chart (FC-0003 Rev B (PD Valkyrie Wing Load Chart)) ↗

Sources

B Performance Designs — Stiletto product page — open ↗
A Performance Designs — Stiletto Flight Characteristics (FC-0013 Rev. 0) — open ↗
B Performance Designs — Stiletto sizing / wing-loading chart (PD website Stiletto Wing Loading Chart, TABLE-0176 REV.0) — open ↗
B Performance Designs — Valkyrie product page — open ↗
A Performance Designs — Valkyrie Flight Characteristics (FC-0003 Rev B) — open ↗
A Performance Designs — Valkyrie sizing / wing-loading chart (FC-0003 Rev B (PD Valkyrie Wing Load Chart)) — 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

See it in your own data

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Other comparisons: Comp Velocity vs Valkyrie · Katana vs Stiletto · Pulse vs Stiletto · Sabre3 vs Stiletto · Comp Velocity vs Stiletto · Katana vs Valkyrie · Spectre vs Stiletto · Spectre vs Valkyrie

Safety notice: This tool is for data review only. It does not replace canopy coaching, DZ rules, traffic awareness, S&TA guidance, or manufacturer guidance. Everything here is information for learning — not advice or a recommendation about any canopy, wing loading, turn or decision. Your decisions are your own. See the Terms of Service.