British Hang Gliding and Paragliding Association

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Information for prospective pilots

Download the BHPA Elementary Pilot Training Guide
(2.86mb)

Buy International & UK subscriptions to Skywings, the official magazine of the BHPA, or purchase back issues.

Learn about
paragliding

Learn about
hang gliding

A member of the European Hang Gliding & Paragliding Union

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The British Hang Gliding & Paragliding Association oversees pilot and instructor training standards, provides technical support, such as airworthiness standards, runs coaching courses for pilots, and supports a country-wide network of recreational clubs and registered schools, providing the infrastructure within which UK hang gliding and paragliding thrive.

Initial hang gliding or paragliding training must be undertaken at a BHPA registered school. Most schools offer training in a wide range of flying disciplines, so it‘s important to understand the differences between the disciplines before choosing a school. The Learn to Fly section of this web site explains the relative merits of each discipline, the types of flying involved, and provides an insight into the training methods used.

As you near the end of your initial training, it‘s important to start looking for suitable recreational club to join. The BHPA supports a network of UK recreational clubs who are able to offer the supportive flying and social environment vital to the safe development of your flying skills as you leave the school enviroment to join other recreational flyers on the hill.

The BHPA also publishes Skywings, a glossy full colour monthly magazine. Skywings is the only magazine dedicated to free flying in the United Kingdom, and is distributed by mail to around 7,000 BHPA members as part of their membership package, and by subscription to countless more pilots and organisations around the world. Back issues of Skywings can also be purchased through our on-line shop.

Skywings Only Magazine Subscriptions are available from the BHPA Shop. Our on-line shop also sells back issues of Skywings, with Three back issues costing only £4.50 including postage and packing, an absolute bargain.

As well as providing automatic third party insurance for its members the BHPA is also affiliated with the specialist insurance brokers Airsports Insurance Bureau Ltd who offers flying and non-flying cover to members and non-members alike.

We hope that when you've found a school appropriate to your needs, made contact and begun training, you‘ll discover for yourself the excitement and challenge that makes free flying such a great pastime. If you do, you‘ll also find that the level of support and camaraderie amongst pilots is one of the many great strengths of the sport. You‘ll make friends, go places and achieve things that you may have only dreamed about in the past.

It‘s a fantastic sport... join us and never look back.

The Pilot Handbook
Written by the BHPA‘s technical manager Mark Dale, the Pilot Handbook includes all the basic and advanced techniques, flight theory, specialist know-how and background studies that a pilot will require from Novice (Club) Pilot training onwards.

Powered Paragliding Bible
From Pulling the wing out of the bag to flying confidently in the national airspace system, the PPG Bible is a concise, easy to use reference guide with over a hundred colour pictures and illustrations. Amazing value for years to come.

Find out the truth behind common myths and misconceptions. Learn the secrets to hassle-free engine maintenance. For advance pilots, learn about flag flying, competition, and precision landing techniques.

PG XC League.
The sophisticated interface allows for downloads of track logs, a zoomed in map, vario and speed readings and much more besides. Local club leagues are also included.

HG National XC League (UKNXCL)
Latest Individual and Club League Tables. Seasonal, Pilot, Glider and Flying Site Summaries, Flight Diary, Forums, Event Diary, and more. Submit your flights online, send in GPS Flight Tracks (as .igc files) for published flights. Comprehensive mapping of flight tracks & UK Airspace, in both 2D & 3D, using GoogleMaps And GoogleEarth.

BHPA‘s disability initiative is called Flyability and aims to promote and provide opportunities for people with disabilities to participate in the sport of hang gliding, paragliding and other related forms of flight.

xcweather.co.uk
Detailing current conditions for wind, weather, dew point, temperature, visibility and pressure, the new design also includes forecasts for six days.

wendywindblows.com
The Wendy Network is a collection of Automatic Weather Stations at outdoor sporting and leisure locations in the UK. Current conditions at any of the weather stations is available by telephone or via the internet. Charges apply, please see their web site for details.

paraglidingmap.com
With so many flying sites in Europe, it‘s often difficult to see where you can fly on any given day. Craig‘s Live Weather Paragliding map displays live weather observations mashed up with paragliding sites to indicate which sites are flyable right now - all over the world.

Visit the BHPA‘s on-line shop for paragliding, hang gliding and paramotoring Videos, DVDs, Books, Skywings overseas subscriptions and more.

Going abroad? Get insured! Contact:
Airsports Insurance Bureau