BHPA Elementary Pilot Course
If you want to experience the ultimate freedom of flight, then join us to train on our BHPA approved training courses. If you want to fly safely in the UK and the rest of the world you’ll need to complete a two-stage training process. Stage one is the Elementary Pilot Course which takes about 5 days to complete and takes you from a complete novice to a standard you are ready to progress onto the Club Pilot Course.
By the end of the course, you will have ticked off several practical tasks that bring you closer to becoming an independent pilot. The main aim of the course is to teach you about the equipment we use and the basic principles of flight, whilst keeping you safe as you progress along your journey. Our goal is to get you flying solo as soon as possible and by the end of the course, you will have completed multiple flights in various flying conditions across a number of our private flying sites. In the Elementary Pilot Course, we focus on completing safe take-off and landings and the early stages of glider control whilst airborne.
During the course You will learn some important flying manoeuvres, you will gain a basic understanding of equipment, glider control, the weather and complete stage one of your journey to becoming a fully qualified pilot. By successfully completing the Elementary Pilot Course you will be able to fly on your own, but at this stage, you still need to be under the supervisions of a qualified instructor. The Elementary Pilot course also ensures that you are ready to start the Club Pilot Course and ultimately fly unsupervised at flying sites around the world.
BHPA Club Pilot Course
If after completing your Elementary Course, you want to continue flying then the next step is to complete the Club Pilot Course. The Club Pilot Course will give you the skills and confidence to fly unsupervised and continue your development into an independent pilot.
Our BHPA approved course is full of theory lectures and practical tasks focusing on your development as a pilot. During the course, you will complete lots of flights to improve your launching and landing techniques. The flights will be longer in duration, also they will be higher than before so you can complete more complicated tasks to improve your piloting skills and improve your confidence.
The Club Pilot Course goes into more detail about how our equipment works and there are multiple theory classes to improve your understanding of the sport. The theory classes prepare you for real-life practical flying situations and there is a simple multiple-choice written exam to complete at the end of the course. Don’t worry, you will be exam ready by the end of the course and our team of instructors will be able to help you should you need extra assistance.
Completing the Club Pilot Course is your first solo rating and allows you to fly unsupervised at our sites and other club sites in the UK and beyond. You will have practical skills and theoretical knowledge that will keep you safe and open the door to an amazing life-changing adventure.
Our site and methods allow us to train more days a year than any other school which means you will learn faster. We teach hill flying and use winching to supplement this training on days when other schools would be grounded. Andy Shaw has developed a newly approved by the BHPA form of towing called parallel towing. This is a brilliant way for Andy to be in direct visual and vocal contact with the students whilst on and off tow. Using this form of towing our students are able to rapidly progress through their Elementary Pilot and Club Pilot training in both paragliding and hang gliding.
Sign yourself up for the course that opens the door to the wonderful world of paragliding!
