Creep tests at ambient conditions have been carried out on Kevlar 49 and Technora yarns covering a wide stress spectrum (1070% average breaking load) for a long period of time (up to a year). The results confirm that Kevlar 49 and Technora yarns show a nonlinear behavior at stresses below 40% of the breaking load and a linear behavior at stresses above 40%. The strength retention following creep for Kevlar 49 and Technora has also been examined. The results show a significant difference in the behavior of the two materials. Kevlar 49 appears to lose strength almost linearly with time, while Technora seems to lose strength much more rapidly. These results would have significant implications for design. (C) 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2012