This is the entry to your life as a pilot.
All Tandem flights are flight introduction or air experience flights and are conducted as per pure syllabus at the sites we operate from. Blue gravity is an approved DTO SACAA001 DTO and thus does not condone flipping and conducts purely instructional tandem flight as part of our syllabus.
The object is to allow the client to experience the height gains, how a paraglider flies, understanding the landing on ones feet and to decide if they are suited to embark upon further training. Flying paragliders is considered to be an extreme sport hence the small number of people participating. it would be remiss to not ensure the potential solo student is fully aware of the both the positive and risks of the sport
To participate and be considered by Blue Gravity to take further training our instructors need to confirm that you are comfortable with thus type of aviation before you spend vast amounts of money on something that you may not be suited to. Paragliding and hang gliding is vastly different to flying a fixed wing or rotor aircraft. To become a student and have the opportiunity to undertake a flight introduction ie the excercise 3 for whict the regulator has made provision and approved our syllabus, one needs to have third party insurance and this is obtained by becoming a Sahpa member.
Anyone can do it as long as you meet the entry criteria. The only limitation age, your intention is to see if the sport is for you, your weight and running ability. There is no minimum or maximum age for flying on a tandem paraglider, though for solo instruction purposes people under 18 years old will need their parents’ consent. However for purposes of instruction we can only accept potential students from 10 years of age. we believe this is where the love for flight is seeded and where we can start with the basics of training.
At 10years a student can decern right from wrong, can start building muscle memory and thus can start ground handling and learn the nuances of handling a paraglider or hang glider. At 14 years of age a person may commence with altitude flight training and at 16 is able if the meet the standard to undertake solo flight without instructor supervision.
AS in gymnastics etc the earlier muscle memory is created and the passion fed the better the the person progresses in ones flying career. It all starts with a tandem flight experience/ air experience. If you feel it , live it no matter your age you develop the passion to do it.
Your instructor will guide you through the whole flight and provide the basic training to complete an initial Tandem Instructional flight. We have a weight limitation of 40kg-120kg . These photos below show Kev flying his daughter.
Please note any form of paragliding may affect your medical aid cover and any insurance policies you may have. If you partake you you do so in this knowledge.
All training flights are weather dependent and we reserve the right to curtail any flight for safety reasons. Your pilot will be an instructor nd is highly trained to ensure your safety during all phases of the instructional flight.
Clothing
Long pants (jeans) and long-sleeved top (sweater or jacket).
Hiking boots with ankle support preferably (otherwise just normal closed running shoes).
These must be supplied by the potential student.
Pre-flight
You will be given a helmet to wear.
You will be securely strapped into a comfortable flying harness.
A full briefing will be provided.
One should never be rushed.
Take-off
To get airborne you will need to run briefly during launch.
You will be under full instruction on this part of the flight and if conditions allow to take ciontrol of the aircraft under supervision to get a feeling for flight.
In-Flight
During the flight you can relax, enjoy the instruction, possibly under control get a feeling for how the craft flies and enjoy the view from your bird’s-eye perspective and experience how to fly a paraglider while under expert instruction .
Pure simplicity and freedom is the true beauty of paragliding.
It is a truly awesome and unique experience!
Landing
On landing you stand up out of your harness and prepare to run.
directly there after you will observe how to terminate the flight and pack away the aircraft and have a debrief. Your instructor will guide you how to ciontinue on to advance to the next phase getting your solo wings
How Much?
The cost is based on taking up a solo course. We advise as we move along.
Please note that the cost vary dependent upon site and should you wish to embark upon the next stage of tuition and training the experience flight cost is removed form the remainder of the ab initio training course cost.
Please note that we do not do scenic flights. our intention is that you love paragliding or hang gliding so much that you join us to become a fully fledge pilot able to enjoy the views form above.
Flights are undertaken only with favourable weather predictions and access to the launch sites. Safety is our priority.
After the flight you will be contacted to follow up on your experience to entice you to continue with your training. Flying a paraglider is like having an aircraft in you suitcase – you can fly it most places and is one of the best forms of aviation.
All flights are conducted at our training sites and within circuit – we do not provide flights “out of circuit” of for site seeing purposes so please do not ask. It is illegal to do sight seeing flights without an air service licence and a operating certificate. Should you want a sight seeing flight you would have to approach sich an operator.