School Info

Information for inbound pilots and people wanting to take courses in Australia

Disclaimer

Just so that you are clear. My website is just a personal page, I'm not a business and have no qualifications as an instructor etc. I'm just a pilot with about 5 years flying experience. Over the years I have introduced a number of people to the sport and ofcourse taken a number of holidays to popular flying sites. The below information is based on those experiences.

Schools I would recommend (this is based on pilots I know that have taken courses):

Windworks Paragliding - Sydney & Blackheath (Blue Mountains), NSW
Patrick Roser is an excellent Instructor committed to safety and good technique. He discovered his passion for paragliding in 1991 and spent the first years flying the European Alps. Involved in the Australian competition circuit, his priority is to share his passion for flying with students.
Windworks is located in the beautiful area of the Northern Beaches of Sydney - and ideal place for the first flight experiences. Long Reef, Warriewood, Cooks Terrace or Newport are the main flying sites.
In winter Patrick heads for the beautiful Blue Mountains, they'll take your breath away. Exceptional scenery and great sites to practice paragliding.

Alpine Paragliding - Bright, Victoria
Certainly the most qualified and probably the most popular school is in Bright, Victoria. Alpine Paragliding has qualified more pilots in Australia than all the other schools combined. Extremely professional outfit, the 3 instructors are all world class pilots, competing regularly on the world circuit. Bright is in the Victorian high country about 3 hrs drive from Melbourne and 9 hrs from Sydney. It's a small pretty town with a great relaxed atmosphere. The people are friendly and the flying is very reliable. My friends and I have an annual flying holiday in Bright. I would recommend staying at the Bright Central Motel and Lodge (ph 61 3 57551074), you can get a twin room with your own bathroom and a clean towel for a very resonable price. The motel has a bar and the owner Garrett is a pilot and very laid-back. The flying school is two doors down the street. No transport is required once in Bright.
Getting to Bright

Manilla Paragliding - Manilla, NSW
Manilla is about 5 hours west of Sydney in the bush. The attraction of Manilla is a great big hill which happens to be excellent for Paragliding. Godfrey Wenness is the local instructor, he currently holds the world open distance record of 335klms. See Manilla.net for more infomation.
Getting to Manilla :- Best to contact: Godfrey Wenness, The Mountain, Manilla NSW 2346, Phone: +61 2 6785-6545 skygodfrey@aol.com
Generally flying courses go for 7 days or more, so a hire car would be sitting around not being used. One-way rentals are not common, so you would have to weigh up the expense. Public transport is the best option if you are thinking or going to Manilla.

Australian Paragliding Centre - Canberra, ACT
Canberra has some brilliant flying sites. The hills around the city cater for all wind directions. The school is very welcoming to all visiting pilots. The Chief Flying Instructor Peter Bowyer has been a member of the Australian Paragliding team for the last 6 years. The school also operates flying tours for visiting pilots to Australia and has been doing so now for the past 6 years.
Getting to Canberra :- Canberra is situated 2 1/2 hours driving south of Sydney on the Hume Highway. Alternatively you can catch a bus or train. Both of which run daily.

High Adventure Air Park NSW Central Coast
You'll find High Adventure Air Park a few hours north of Sydney. There are 15 flying sites in all with takeoffs in every direction. I'm yet to fly there myself by a work colleague was able to complete his course their in just under a week and was given a good price on the wing and harness he used throughout the course. Accommodation is on site which makes for a relaxing holiday.

Site Info

Apart from Bright, Manilla, High Adventure Air Park

Stanwell Tops
Probably the most scenic of all Australia flying. The takeoff is a high headland over the Pacific Ocean. Once airborne scenery up and down the coast is spectacular. The only issue is the wind is less than consistent It's off more than its on. But if you have time on your hands, it's worth the wait.
Getting to Stanwell:-
Stanwell is only 1 hour south of Sydney. You can get the train (Sydney-Wollongong line) and hitch up the hill, check timetables.

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