Hang Gliding - Get Started Guide

Learn to fly! When I signed-up for hang gliding, I was so excited I could not sleep the night before. How would it feel when I fly? Hang Gliding is one of the most popular adventure sports. It is a dream to fly like a bird in the most organic form, very silent and peaceful. In this world we are very fortunate to have learnt a lot about the principles of flight, more than the Wright Brothers knew when they dreamt of flying. Now the sport is as safe as you want it to be. If you are reading this article you are probably already considering hang gliding. In this guide I will like to help you get started with Hang Gliding.

Research Hang Gliding

The best way to get started is to learn about the sport. There is a lot of information online, I will list some of these reference sites at the end of the article. Visit a local book shop or library and read some books. Hang Gliding For Beginner Pilots by Peter Cheney is an excellent book. Learn about the basic of flight principles and about the hang glider. Of course I am updating this post regularly with more information.

Visit A Training Site

You can visit a local training site and you can find local training sites around your area if you are in US from U.S. Hang Gliding and Paragliding Association at http://www.ushpa.aero/. Talk to the training pilots and instructor at the public training sites. Ask lots of questions and they are generally very helping. It also gives you a feeling how it is while learning hang gliding. It's always fun to watch hang gliders launch and descend back from different heights on hang gliding training sites.

Choosing a hang gliding school and instructor

Choosing a good instructor is very important. Hang gliding is one sport that cannot and should not be learnt by oneself. It's much safer as the certified instructors know how sport requires extensive precision and attention to details. Therefore make sure your instructor is certified and has had enough teaching experience. It always helps to ask the safety rating of the instructor and the school.

Ask about the learning equipment the school uses. To begin with the special training gliders like Condor 330 and 225 are considered best. This gives students safety and enough time to practice steering and control. Check the batch size number of students per instructor, generally its 4:1 if you are lucky or 3:1 is good. Talk to your instructors and ask questions, make sure they are experts in their knowledge and can answer all of your questions.

Another good indicator is to check if the school has any manufacturer support and representation. Generally if a school has manufacturer sale and support, it means the school is trustworthy to the manufacturer to sell and can service their equipment. They would also be able to pass down more discounts on the lessons, equipment and accessories to their students, when you are ready to buy one. The most important is the instructor and school's professionalism.

• School should be USHGA certified school with certified instructors
• Average Size of the classes
• Type of Equipment used, training site details
• Expertise and professionalism of the instructor

Sign up for a Tandem Flight

Once you have enough information and have selected the school you are considering to start your sport, sign up for a tandem flight. Hang gliding is a big commitment, both in terms of money and time. Tandem flight will give you an opportunity to experience how it is like to hang glide and if you want to pursue it.

Sign up for a minimum 5 flights package

If you enjoyed your tandem flight and are all thumb's up for the sport- sign up for at least a 5 lessons package. Make sure not to waste too much time between classes or you will end up where you started. Attend a certification course designed to teach you flying techniques and about safety as defined in pilot proficiency system of USHPA.

U.S. Hang Gliding and Paragliding Association http://www.ushpa.aero/

Wondering what is covered in New Pilot Package Lessons check out:
Learn to Fly Lesson-1
Learn to Fly Lesson-2

"Practice is the key to the secret of flying." - Orville and Wilbur Wright

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Learn to Fly Basics (Lesson-2)

In the first lesson we learned about basics like glider setup, pre-flight inspection; ground handling, balancing the glider, technique for practicing foot launch and we took our first flight. It is the most wonderful memory, the first time I flew like a baby bird. We are now ready for yet another interesting experience trying to steer the glider to fly on course.

Practice Run

Second class started off with the practice run; this helped the instructor evaluate where we left last time and how much we remember. Performing the walk, run, and jog exercise also helps to get comfortable with the glider. I felt handing the glider much easier than in the previous session. I felt I could pick up and balance the glider almost naturally with the nose pointing into the wind with the correct yaw.

The flight instructor made the goals clear for the lesson. First was to foot launch from a higher point on the training hill, second practice level flight steering to fly on course and finally perform a soft run out landing.

Constant Angle of Attack

This lesson an emphasis is on maintaining a constant angle of attack during foot launch. As you run with the glider and experiment, you will learn that there is a angle at which the glider will plane smoothly through the air with minimum effort. This is the best angle for launching correctly.

In case you are not able to launch correctly, it is possible you are holding the nose too high or too low. In case the nose is too high you may not be able accelerate properly before glider lifts up, in case the wings are not balanced this may also lead to glider turning towards the lowered wing. If you are running with the nose too low, you will feel the glider is getting ahead of you and will not be generating lift and you may run all the way to the bottom of the hill. Practice on maintaining a correct constant angle of attack for successful launching. Fortunately I had full marks today on launching.

Level Flight

The key to get a level flight is launch at correct constant angle of attack and have a very light touch at the glider control bar. Light touch at the control bar means the glider will fly straight by itself without any input from the pilot. Of course in case of gusty winds you will need to steer the glider. With light touch you can feel the aerodynamic response of the glider which helps further in steering and maintaining a constant speed. I was holding the control bar to tight which did not let the glider fly and my flights were shorter. On practicing light touch I could glide much better.

Fly On Course

In smooth winds the glider are stable enough to fly straight on course without any assistance from the pilot. However since the wind does not flow from a single direction, the glider may change its course? We need to correct the glider by steering it to fly on course. When a gust of wind raises one wing more then the other the glider will start to turn in the direction of the lowered wind since it is banked over. We need to straighten it out, by moving our weight towards the high wing. The farther the weight is moved and for longer it is moved, the more roll control is applied to the glider.

The most effective technique to correct this is to bump the weight to the side of higher wing and return to the center of the control bar. If the course is not corrected bump it again. There is a lag between the gliders responding to your inputs, In case you hold your weight for too long for glider to respond you may roll more than required. Therefore small increments of bumps make sure you are correcting the course of fly and not initiating a complete turn. It is better to under control a number of times then to over control the glider.

Landing

We did not practice best techniques for landing yet. The flight instructor was okay with landing on glider’s training wheels. I followed the same approach I learned before. I was much better this time never landed on the training wheels. I started with slightly pushing out the control bar to get to the flare speed and finally brought the glider to a stall by pushing the glider control bar to the max.

For information about getting started with Hang Gliding Check: Get Started Guide!

If you are a pilot check this video you will like it Birds!

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Hang Glider Classifieds

Hang Gliding Classifieds Information About Sites for Sale or Trade

Here is a collection of online resources I visit often for information about sale or trade of new and used hang gliding equipment. If you come across any other good source for sale or trade of hang gliding equipment please comment and report broken links.

Fly Funston
For Sale/Wanted forum for Bay Area, CA

Wings of Rogallo
Gear for Sale or Trade in East Bay, CA

Hang Gliding organization
Hang Gliding Classifieds

USHPA Classifieds
USHPA classifieds Ad index

Sonoma Wings
For Sale in Santa Rosa, CA

North West Hang Gliding
Classified ads for hang gliding and paragliding gear for Pacific North West Region

West Coast Soaring Club
West Coast Soaring Club For Sale Forum

Hat Creek Rim
Check Hat Creek Rim in Shasta, CA message forum

The Oz Report
Davis Straub's Classifieds on The Oz Report

The E Team
Hang Gliders for Sale page

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Learn to Fly Basics (Lesson-1)

It was a nice Saturday morning! I got up at 6:00 am and as part of the protocol called in to confirm the first class at Ed Levin County Park in Milpitas. Generally the classes are in Hollister but the rest of the training team was out for the Wind Festival in Monterey. After loading three gliders Condor 330, 225 and a Falcon we left for the training hill.

The park was already awake when we entered at 8:00 am. H1 Pilots were setting up their gliders for foot launch near landing area. H2 gliders and training to be H3's were setting up on the 300' and 600' hill launch areas. Some guys started trekking for the 300' hill for launching their para gliders. It was so inspiring and a wonderful feeling to start off the new sport.

Glider Setup and Pre-Flight Inspection

Our lesson began with setup of the two Condors. The setup is easy, but its very difficult to get the setup wrong as most people describe it. We spent more time on understanding about the safety measures and performing pre-flight inspection of the glider. We got familiar with the harness. You can check the length of harness by hanging from the glider hook. The distance of your chest from the control bar should be between 3 to 6 inches.

Ground Handling

The glider nose needs to be aimed into the wind while carrying it, so that wind does not act on the glider. It is easy to carry the glider if it is balanced, since equal wind pressure is applied to both wings. Generally the nose needs to be pulled down, so that the glider does not produce lift and is easy to maneuver. While parking the glider always park it with the tail in the direction of the wind or at least one wing into the wind. It is always easier to handle the glider by holding the nose on a windy hill. You must push the glider by the nose while you take it up the hill during your initial training sessions.

Balancing the Glider

When the glider is balanced its nose is pointing into the wind, and equal wind pressure is applied to both the wings. In case the wind is changing direction, it will exert more pressure on one of the wing and will raise it more than the other. You need to rotate the nose towards the lifted wing (yaw motion) until the gilder is balanced again.

Just to add emphasis; its very important to balance the glider before launch and landing, otherwise the glider will take a turn and you will never have a good launch or landing.

Walk, Jog, Fly Exercise

Once we practice balancing the glider, we learn how to run with the glider for foot launch. This is called the walk, walk, run, run exercise. Start with taking small steps, then jogging while the wind picks up the glider. The glider is now flying - tow the glider with your harness, and keep very light control of the control bar with your hands. Now you must slow down so that the glider is back into the hands. Perform this exercise until you are very comfortable and can feel the glider fly.

First Flight

Now you are ready for the first flight. In the first flight we need to foot launch, fly at level and finally land. During launch make sure you are hooked onto the glider. Then perform harness hook checks by lifting up the glider and feeling the pull on your shoulders. Check the angle of nose to make sure you are at the right pitch, balance the glider, and finally shout clear so that other pilots know you are now launching.

Pull the control bar a little bit to lower pitch, so that you can run longer and gain more speed before the glider lifts you. After achieving enough speed be light on the control bar and push it a little bit to fly off the ground. At this time the glider will lift you. This is the most amazing feeling - the feeling of flying! In order to fly straight always look up towards your target landing spot. If you are fortunate enough to be in air for some time you will get a chance to steer the glider. In case your glider is moving out of the straight flight path, correct it by adjusting your weight to the left or right.

Finally, push the control bar to raise the nose a little bit. This pitch movement will create drag slowing down the glider and will try to lift it up. This acts like air brakes. When the glider stops lifting extend your arms to stall the glider to a complete stop. You are good if you can land on your feet. I could do it only once out of my 4 flights, but the other 3 times I just landed on my knees : )

Happy Flying!

Beginner Hang Gliding Rating H1 Requirements

For information about getting started with Hang Gliding Check: Get Started Guide!

If you are a pilot check this video you will like it Birds!

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