Does Training on the Coast Make You a Successful Pilot?

Recently, some Powered Paragliding Instructors have gravitated towards running their training programs at coastal training sites. These training packages are being dubbed as “coastal training vacations,” and cost quite a bit more than most inland schools. Being on the coast is a nice way to take a vacation, however, are these students leaving with the skills needed to become a successful pilot? As the sport has grown, BlackHawk’s National Training Centers have seen an influx of these students contacting us for “additional training.”

Mike Robinson of BlackHawk Paramotors commented:

“It’s easy to train students on the coast. Especially for Instructors who are newer to teaching. The wind is perfect and consistent for practicing or learning kiting. In addition, many “coastal instructors” utilize tiny gliders. These gliders make kiting easier, however, they are not the gliders a student will fly at home. Realism is very important in aviation. Most of these students live inland where the wind conditions are completely different. Many of these students get back home, only to find out they can’t launch. Clean laminar coastal wind travels thousands of miles without obstruction. It would be like teaching someone to swim with a life jacket on the entire time. Power forwards in zero wind, controlling oscillation caused by inland thermals, and kiting in wind with directional changes are imperative skills for pilots to learn. In addition to covering this, we use tow machines, simulators, and expose students to a variety of kiting conditions in preparation for becoming a successful pilot. We have 2 lakes for flying in smooth air, as well as a multitude of varying conditions inland for practicing active piloting. We picked the BlackHawk Ranch as our head National Training Center because of its relevant conditions for facilitating proper training. This is one of the many reasons why we have become the largest, most sought-out Paramotor Training Center in the US. It’s unfortunate that many people out there end up paying for lessons twice, or completely giving up on the sport because they didn’t get what they signed up for. For us, it’s all about safe, realistic flying, and we do everything possible to ensure each student leaves here a successful pilot.”

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