Cross-country flying – a chess game with nature

To fly hundreds of kilometers, without any engine, alone with the forces of nature, that is what makes gliding so exciting. Scenic flights in the mountains, in breathtaking sceneries and incomparable up-winds, is the peak of this fascination.

The cross-country flying area of ​​the Eastern Alps, which runs from Unterwössen, stretches from the Raxalpe at the gates of Vienna to St. Moritz, even as far as the Oberalp Pass to the west, and extends south to the Karawanken and the Dolomites. The large inner-alpine longitudinal valleys, north and south of the main Alpine ridge, form real thermic racetracks, provide clear navigation lines and offer comparatively numerous and very safe outdoor landing possibilities - ideal conditions to train cross-country flying.

We offer multi-day beginner courses and two-week advanced courses. We fly with you in several small groups - one coach in the double-seater and two, maximum three, single-seaters. Together we approach the edge of the Alps to then proceed to the high Alps. The route and its length depend on the weather, the individuals and the experience and ability of the participants.

It is not our goal to force a certain mileage or to cover fixed standard routes. Rather, we want to give you the basic knowledge and the ability to be able to train yourself systematically and safely in the mountains. In case of inaccessible weather, we organize a theory day - with a maximum of ten to twelve participants per course in a very intensive seminar atmosphere, in which we can answer your individual questions. You can take part in the courses with your own plane or charter one of ours. If possible, each participant will have the opportunity to fly in a double seater with one of our experienced coaches, but of course the less experienced participants will have priority.

Prerequisites:

The introductory course is aimed primarily at pilots who have no experience in mountain and / or cross-country flying. However, you should feel safe and comfortable with your self-brought or chartered one-seater: you should have had at least five aerotows and five precise landings during the current season. Furthermore, you should be accustomed to flights of three hours.

For the advanced course, however, some advanced flying experience (mountains or lowland) is highly recommended, as well as some basic mountain flying experience, for example from a previous vacation. You should be accustomed to flights of five hours.

More important than any minimum number of hours or kilometers are the following criteria:

• You should feel comfortable to leave the gliding area of ​​your home ground.

• You should feel confident to handle an off-field landing on a large, even field with free approach.

• You should have enough routine in flying thermals, to be able to reliably use an updraft marked by another aircraft.