BHPA Pilot rating in One Week!

SIV and XC Course, Bohinj

A wing control (SIV) course is an important part of any pilot’s development and safety training.  Whether newly qualified or experienced, the benefit of attending a well-run Wing Control programme is unquestionable.

The Importance of Wing Control

Improving your wing control will help you to make the most of your flying experience.  For many pilots the pleasure of setting off into the unknown, of crossing valleys and mountains using only the warm air currents is paragliding Nirvana.  XC flying requires the pilot to exploit these warm air currents, otherwise known as thermals, using them efficiently to gain sufficient height to glide to the next thermal.  But, by their very nature, thermals are turbulent!  In fact, unless your flying is confined to the smoothest ridge lift you will sooner or occasionally later, come face to face with.... turbulence!  Even pilots confining themselves to the silkiest of ridge-lift will at some point be presented with a situation in which their piloting skills are put to the test.

 

Skills required to go XC can be neatly divided into two main sorts.  Firstly, the good XC pilot needs to read the sky, the conditions and play the “chess game” – it’s the ultimate game of strategy: of man against the elements (and of course it’s fantastic fun!).  Second, and of equal importance, is piloting skill: the ability to get the most out of the wing, to turn efficiently, to feel the air and to control precisely the position of the wing relative to you, the pilot.  It’s this ability to control or “pilot” the wing that is all too often ignored by budding XC enthusiasts.

 

It is no coincidence that some of the best XC pilots in the world are also some of the best acrobatic pilots in the world.  And if not, they certainly have excellent wing control – the ability to sense the air, to avoid collapses, and to fly safely.  All pilots can gain an immense amount by improving their wing control.

 

Indeed, flying with little other than “left and right” control abilities is rather like driving a car and not knowing what to do when you hit the ice... and if you’re flying a paraglider, be warned: there’s plenty of ice out there!  Your wing’s ability to recover from a collapse is tested by the DHV or EN system in still air!! Whatever your canopy rating, whatever class of wing you fly, reacting in the wrong way to a nasty patch of air can turn a dangerous experience into something much worse.

 

Not only will improving your wing control help you develop a healthier respect and more genuine confidence in your own flying abilities, but you will also become a safer pilot and usually enjoy your flying even more than before!

 

So, what’s the best way to improve piloting skills? What are SIV courses all about?  "I'm just into mellow flying: isn’t SIV just for acro-type crazy 18-year olds?"

 

What’s all this SIV stuff about?

SIV is the French acronym for “Simulation d’Incident en Vol”.  In brief, SIV is all about Simulating Situations in Flight and learning how to deal with them.  These “situations” range from canopy collapses of which there are several different sorts, through to spins and even cravats.

Isn’t that the same as Acro?

Acrobatic flying (acro. for short) and SIV are often confused.  Quite simply, whereas SIV attempts to simulate what can go “wrong” whilst flying, acro is all about pulling crazy manoeuvres on purpose – for the sheer fun of it.  Of course, acro might be something that is of absolutely no interest to you (particularly as a participant!).  On the other-hand, if you are serious about paragliding, if you want to improve your flying, fly with more confidence and more importantly be a safer pilot, SIV is definitely something you should consider.

Wing Control

A well-run SIV course should have many elements of wing control associated with their schedule of manoeuvres.  But rather than pushing pilots through a set procedure of manoeuvres that they might not even understand the purpose of, we believe it to be of far greater importance that pilots develop a real “feel” for their canopy.  For example, more important than recovering a collapsed canopy is learning how to avoid a collapse in the first place!  This shift in emphasis might seem subtle, but it is in our opinion of utmost importance.  Far too often, pilots leave an SIV course without any real understanding of what those “crazy” manoeuvres are all about.  Sadder still, a few pilots return from an SIV course more scared and confused about paragliding than ever before.

 

Our boutique philosophy

Rather than pushing students through the standard SIV hoops, we believe it far more beneficial that a course be tailored specifically to each pilot’s individual needs.  We all learn at different rates; we all fly different wings; we all have different levels of confidence; different levels of experience and often very different ways of learning.

 

Our Wing Control SIV courses are progressive, but whereas some pilots might very quickly be ready to simulate a very radical situation after a day or two, other pilots might progress more slowly deciding to repeat manoeuvres until they gain a deeper understanding of their wing.

 

Full briefing:  Directly before each flight, together with your instructor, you will develop an individual game plan discussing the task until you are completely happy that you have understood.

 

Directly after each flight your instructor will use high quality video footage to debrief the task making sure that you fully understand the manoeuvre and the sensations involved.  At the end of the day, in the comfort of the classroom, all tasks will again be debriefed providing another opportunity for pilots to ask questions.

 

 

This course is all about learning the limits of your wing and of developing a natural feel and appropriate reactions to changes in wing pressure, to turbulence and in-flight “situations”.  Here’s a list of possible exercises you might progress through (not necessarily in order!!)

 

Wing Control Exercises Pitch Control Exercises Dynamic Turns and Weight Shift Exercises (Roll authority) Turn Reversals Wingovers   Rapid Decent Techniques Big ears (with speed bar) Spiral Dives B-line Stall

SIV Tasks Asymmetric collapses Symmetric collapse (full frontal, front stall) Accelerated Symmetric collapses Accelerated Asymmetric collapses Full stall Spin Ampmax Acro (for very experienced pilots only) Wingovers (big ones!) SAT Loops Helicopter

 

 

Mixing it up with some XC flying

A full-on one week “head-bangers” SIV course is mentally exhausting for most people.  We believe that you’ll get much more from your experience by mixing up the “SIV” with a little bit of free flying and real XC adventure.  Based in Slovenia, a veritable paraglider's Mecca, it would be a shame not to!  Not only that, but because the road back up to launch is excellent, we probably manage as many flights in 3 days as most other courses manage in a week!!

 

Therefore, after all the action, we’ll be taking the life-jacket off and putting your new found piloting skills to great advantage.  Slovenia fantastic Mountain XC potential and so in the last few days of your holiday, we’ll be exploiting that to the maximum.  We think you’ll be surprised at just how much your piloting abilities have improved.

 .....Phew!!!  Now for something slightly less stressful..

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WING CONTROL
SIV COURSE
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Flights

Airport transfer is to and from Ljubljana airport.
Please don’t book your flights until you have booked your course and only then when you have heard back from us.