I am selling my vintage Alien Performance 5.5. It is a high-performance quad-line traction foil, 5.5 square meters. The sail is solid purple on the back, solid white on the front with a single diagonal purple stripe. The bridle is all original. The original bag is also included.

This kite came to me brand-new in 2000. It has travelled with me all over Texas, looking for the perfect buggy spots. Since I got my Libre Bora II 4.5 in 2005, this Alien hasn't seen much air.

There are no rips, no tears, no blown out cells, no frayed edges or frayed bridle legs. It has never needed repair. The only evidence that it was ever used is the traces of beach sand in the cells, and some dried dirt on the exterior surfaces.

I have taught many buggiers on this kite, and buggied many miles with it myself. This kite has plenty of life still in it. It pulls hard and flies fast, but it's very nimble and easy to control despite its size.

I am selling the kite by itself -- no handles, no lines -- $200 (or best offer).

Wow - it always amazes me when something completely new to me comes out of the woodwork - never even heard on Alien kites and I've done countless weeks of research on kite history.

Any pics?!?!

Same graphic and design as the airea raptor (2, I think.) When airea closed up shop, some of the design rights went one way and some another, so I was told by someone involved with the company. Do not know how they compare to the raptors as far as the type of materials used for the wing or bridal. Every company has it's own preference, obviously.

It was my impression that Alien became Airea, and rebranded everything. One of my local buggy friends had a couple of Airea kites, and from what we could tell they were exactly the same -- sail pattern, construction, materials. And based on the two of us flying each others kites, they had exactly the same flight characteristics.

I will post pictures shortly. This was the first time I had it out and fully unfolded in about 6 years. I forgot how big this monster is, and it's only 5.5 m!

The guy I talked to was an airea investor that bought in right before the company went away (lost some $$$ on that one.) He has some or maybe all of the designs and told me that Alien came about after, and in the same manner- had the designs. Funny things happen when companies like these break up. But I could be wrong, just what I was told. Also, I believe the original designer of these kites was Ernst Strobhel (sorry if I spelled that wrong) who I am pretty sure went to or possibly formed the kiting part of U-turn. Anybody have a for sure on that?

Here are some pictures (sorry for the poor lighting). Let me know if you have any specific questions.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/66998266@N05/sets/7215762757369...

The kite took up half my living room. I untied and straightened out the bridle just to check it... no tangles... a miracle in and of itself.

Nice looking kite. I wonder if alien made these in different weights. I saw one at nabx a couple of years ago, same colors, but it looked like thicker material. Performance could be another series made out of something like porcher. I have a century made of that, pretty nice stuff. Good luck with your sale!