IPPI 3 Club Pilot Course

1.450

ALL INCLUDED PACKAGE
Keep learning and become an autonomous qualified pilot.
For beginners who have already done the IPPI 2 course.
Duration: 6 days / 7 nights.
✅ All flying equipment
🔀 Insurances
🏠 Accommodation Included
✈️ Free Airport Transfers
🚩 Algodonales, Spain

BOOK NOW! Small groups. Limited places

Secure your place with a small deposit and pay the balance on arrival. FREE CANCELLATION UP TO 30 DAYS BEFORE

☹️If dates you like are not available...  CONTACT US

 

✅ INSTRUCTIONS FOR BOOKING: ❶ Navigate the calendar with buttons <>. ❷ Click on the dates you like. ❸ Click on the "Booking" button below.
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Description

Paragliding course for beginners.

Keep learning and become an autonomous paragliding pilot.

FAI IPPI 3 | BHPA Club Pilot| APPI Pilot

The paragliding course FAI IPPI 3 (also called BHPA Club Pilot or APPI Pilot) is the next step in your career to become an autonomous paraglider pilot and at the end of the course, you will get a qualification that allows you to fly unsupervised.

In southern Spain, you will take advantage of the excellent weather conditions for maximum air-time.

REQUIREMENTS

WHAT YOU NEED TO BE
Before you attend to this level, you must have done the paragliding course IPPI 2, BHPA Elementary pilot, or the APPI 2 Explorer pilot, or any equivalent, within the last 9 months (otherwise, you should do some refresher days before you start).

Your instructor will evaluate your skills and basic knowledge on the first day of the course. Ground-handling: you must be able to inflate and control your wing on a forward launch and make a simple flight before you start with the CP course tasks.

  • You must be older than 16 years old and your weight 120 Kg max.
  • The briefings are in English or Spanish. You must understand at least one of these languages.

 

Zero Gravity: International Paragliding School Recognized by FAI, APPI and BHPA

Our paragliding school is approved, and accredited by FAI, RFAE, APPI and BHPA, which means that we can certify and apply for licenses recognized worldwide.
We are also a BHPA Recognized School and we offer courses and qualifications for residents who require a BHPA license to fly in the UK.

In our paragliding school, you can be rated in one or more of these organizations.

  • RFAE, is the Spanish Air Sports Federation
  • APPI, is an Association of Paragliding Pilots and Instructors which Offers a worldwide united education system.
  • BHPA, the British Hang Gliding and Paragliding Association, provides the infrastructure within which hang gliding and paragliding in the United Kingdom.
  • FAI, the World Air Sports Federation, is the world governing body for air sports.

BHPA Club Pilot Course (BHPA CP-IPPI 3) Syllabus

Phase 6 - Pre-soaring.

  • Theory: Further weather and site assessment, soaring flight theory, lift bands, flight planning, and rules of the air.
  • Demonstrate consistent competent unassisted launches and controlled turns up to 180 degrees and beyond.
  • Planned Approaches: Demonstrate consistent competent controlled approaches (using different techniques) and landings in a designated area.

Phase 7 - Soaring.

  • Soaring flight: Consistently using ridge lift to maintain and gain height.
  • Top Landings: Demonstrate safe, consistent and controlled top landings on at least two sites or in different conditions [this task is optional].
  • Flying with others: Consistent competence in flying with others, observing the Rules of the Air and Collision Avoidance Rules.

Phase 8 - Improving Skills.

  • Exploring the speed range: Competence in using the speed range of the paraglider, and understanding the hazards including the stall.
  • Accelerator Systems: Competence in using accelerator systems and knowledge of their use and related dangers.
  • Forward Launching: Demonstrate consistent competence in forward launching skills, under full control throughout.
  • Reverse Launching: Demonstrate consistent competence in reverse launching skills, under full control throughout.
  • Weight-shift and pitch-roll coordination in turns: Demonstrate consistent competence in steering the glider with weight-shift and in controlling pitch.
  • Cross-wind and slope landings: Demonstrate consistent competence in cross-wind and slope landings and understand when and how to use and associated hazards [this task is optional].

Phase 9 - Instability & Emergencies

  • Theory: Tree and water landing procedures, Parachute Landing Fall competence, emergency parachute systems, alternative control systems and dealing with instability and turbulence.
  • Active flying: Coping with turbulence, including pitch control.
  • Rapid descent techniques: The use of the ‘big ears’ descent technique, including its limitations and hazards.
  • Dealing with an asymmetric tuck: Demonstrate how to deal effectively with small tucks in flight.

Phase 10 - Theory & Exam

  • Meteorology: More detailed knowledge of weather and conditions for safe flying.
  • Principles of flight: Knowledge of how the wing flies; effect of controls; forces on a wing; stalls, spins etc.
  • Rules of the Air and Airlaw: Airlaw in paragliding activities, including controlled airspace and essential liaison with other air users.
  • General Airmanship knowledge: Including human factors, flying abroad, repairs, inspections, coaching and clubs.
  • Theory Examination: Two multiple choice written exam papers. A wrong answer to ANY Collision Avoidance question means automatic failure of the entire exam.

Final Assessment. Assessment of student’s attitude and standard of airmanship to fly safely and competently outside the supervision of a school.

 

INCLUDES

WE OFFER YOU IN THE PACKAGE...
Coaching with professional instructors.

  • Accommodation in a single room.
  • Free Transfers from/to Malaga Airport (*Saturdays at 13h00).
  • The rent of the full flight equipment.
  • Third-party & Accident insurance, with repatriation cover.
  • Shuttle to the flying sites & retrieves: we can fly in more than 10 different spots. We don't mind moving to another area if it is necessary due to weather conditions.

 

INSURANCE

INCLUDED IN THE PRICE
The students in the beginner's courses are covered by our liability insurance and by basic sanitary insurance in case of an accident, including repatriation.

Please read the coverage of our insurance.

Nevertheless, we recommend you have your own Travel Accident Insurance with full rescue/repatriation cover.

If you are a citizen of the EU, bring your European Health Insurance Card (EHIC). This entitles you to reduced-cost, sometimes free, medical treatment.

 

ALGODONALES, SPAIN

FLY WHERE THE SUNSHINE!
Our Paragliding School is located in Algodonales, one of the best paragliding spots in southern Spain and one of the most popular in Europe.

Why you should choose Spain? Because we have the best climate conditions for paragliding the whole year round, even in winter, while the rest of Europe is frozen, we can fly great thermals at 18-20ºC.

During winter, the flights are calm, it is not too cold and there are smooth thermals. It could rain, but generally not too many consecutive days. In the Spring and early Autumn, the thermals offer especially high and long-distance flights, and the temperature is perfect. In summer it is hot (very!) but we can enjoy smooth flights during the long evenings until sunset.

The mountains around Algodonales have a variety of flying spots and the coast is just one hour away and offers two other easy coastal flying sites above sand dunes.

And it is not only about flying but you will enjoy the culture and the real people of Spain.

Despite Algodonales is not a big town, you will find all you need for a comfortable holiday: there are supermarkets, local shops, several banks with cash machines, pharmacies and a health centre.

The village is full of restaurants and cafes, and they are open from early morning to midnight: you cannot miss tasting the fantastic local food and tapas at low prices: coffee or beer from 1.2€, tapas from 2€ and a daily menu by only 8-10€.

Algodonales is also ideally situated for visiting the surrounding great cities and sights of interest such as Ronda, Grazalema, Sevilla, Granada, Cordoba, Cadiz, Jerez de la Frontera, Costa de la Luz and Costa del Sol.

PLAN YOUR TRIP TO SPAIN

ACCOMMODATION

INCLUDED IN YOUR PACKAGE
We have included your accommodation in the price of the package

We cooperate with local hosts and we will make a reservation for you: a single private room in a self-catering house shared with other pilots. All the houses have wifi, bed sheets, towels and kitchen facilities. They are located in the centre of the village and a few minutes walk to restaurants, shops and our Flight Centre.

If you require accommodation for couples or families please get in touch and we can arrange this.

If you don't need an accommodation or you wish to arrange your own accommodation please let us know: we will give a discount of 175 euros per week on your final price.

NEAREST AIRPORTS

WHERE AND WHEN TO ARRIVE AND DEPART?
If you come by plane, the nearest airports to Algodonales are Malaga, Sevilla, and also Jerez.

The dates of your booking are starting and finishing dates. You should arrive on the day before the starting date, at any time, and depart on the day after the finishing date.

i.e. If your reservation is Sept 22th - Sept 27th you should arrive on the 21st. We start on the 22nd morning and finish on the 27th evening. You must check-out on the 28th.

AIRPORT SHUTTLE

FREE AIRPORT TRANSFERS
We provide free airport transfer only from/to the Malaga airport <> Algodonales (we do not have a shuttle service to Sevilla or Jerez Airports) on the set travel dates, normally on Saturdays.

The shuttle service departs from Malaga airport on the arrival date (the day before the starting date, normally on Saturdays) at 13:00 h, and arrives at Algodonales approx. at 15:00 h

On the check-out day (the day after the finishing date, normally on Saturdays) the shuttle departs from Algodonales approx. at 10:30 h and arrives at Malaga airport at approx. 12:30 h

Please keep this time in mind when you book your flights.

HOW TO GET HERE

OUR ADDRESS: Calle Ronda, 10. Algodonales. 11680. Spain
If you cannot take our airport shuttle service then you can try another way to get here:

RENT A CAR: Hiring a car could be the best option and sometimes is cheaper than taking a bus. There are several Rental Car Companies in the airports which offer very good prices. You can find cheap offers on their websites. Please check the fuel policies (we always recommend full to full) and insurance options/costs for deposit or top-up insurance policies.

TAXI: There is a taxi service at Algodonales and they offer the airport shuttle. The price from Malaga or Sevilla to Algodonales is approx. 120€. Sometimes, there are more people taking the same taxi and you can share the price with them. Ask for sharing the taxi when you make your booking.

You can also take any other taxi at the airport, but ask for the price first!; it will be often much much expensive than the local taxi.

You can book your taxi here: Algodonales Taxi driver's contact phone number: +34 695 39 66 34 (WhatsApp available)

BUS: There are Bus Companies that make the route to Algodonales from Malaga or Sevilla. You may take a bus or a taxi from the airport to the main Bus Station in the town, then take a bus to Algodonales. If you can't find a direct line to Algodonales you can try to Ronda or to Olvera, which are close to Algodonales and change to another bus to Algodonales.

Malaga Bus Station (Paseo de los Tilos, s/n. 29006 Malaga, Spain). Website: http://estabus.malaga.eu/

Sevilla Bus Station (Plaza Prado San Sebastián, s/n. 41004 Sevilla, Spain). Website:

Frequently Asked Questions

Breakfasts and other meals are not included in the prices.
Restaurants and shops at Algodonales are not expensive. The accommodation has a shared kitchen with all facilities, so you can also cook your own food if you wish.

Our paragliding school is recognized by several associations and federations (APPI, BHPA, FAI, RFAE). This means that you will qualify for a paragliding license with them upon completing your course with us. The fee to join any of these organizations is not included in the price of the course. Joining a federation is not mandatory, but recommended if you like to get a license.

Paragliding is weather dependent activity so we have to be flexible when making plans. We try to seize the time to optimize the training practices, but on a normal day you can expect the following plan:

We start at 9:30h with theory lessons at the school, and there is a briefing with the students, pilots, and instructors around 10:30h.

After the daily briefing, we go flying. We provide transport to the flying sites; you don't need to drive your own car.

The flight sites are around 30 minutes to one hour by car from Algodonales. Some days, if the weather is not good for flying in our area, we move to a different flying site; this could take one or two hours by car.

If the conditions to fly are good, we can spend the whole day flying in the mountains (or the coast), up to sunset. But if part of the day is not good for flying we can organice theory lessons, ground-handling practices or just time off for you to relax or for visiting the areas around.

We normally have a pack-lunch with us, but if there is a time we prefer to have lunch in a local restaurant to taste real Spanish food.

On our return to the town, most of the people like to have dinner together.

In the case of bad weather, we spend more time in theory lessons and we can organize an alternative activity for the group, or anyone can do whatever they want, such as a tourist tour, hiking,… or just resting for the next day.

Pack adequate comfortable clothing: warm clothes if your course is in winter. You will need a jacket in spring; it can be cold at the top of a mountain. Bring walking boots (ideally with ankle support), a sun hat, sun cream, sunglasses and also a swimming costume as there is a lake that you can canoe or swim.

For students enrolled in a beginner's course, a long-sleeved t-shirt is a good idea for ground-handling practice. Long pants will avoid scratches on your legs.

We provide towels in accommodation.

Bring your reusable bottle and help reduce single-use plastic. There are good water fountains here and you can also refill your bottle from the tap.

Beginners Paragliding courses: Max. 6 students in a group with  2-3 instructors.

Guided tours: Max. 8 pilots per instructor.

XC Camps: Max. 8 pilots per instructor, and a driver who tracks the pilots with GPS.

Only the students signed up for any of our beginner's courses have basic accident and third-party insurance included in the price. Anyway, buying your own accident and travel insurance is recommended.

Read here the terms and conditions of the accident insurance.

Qualified pilots signed up for holidays or tours should have their accident insurance, and full rescue/repatriation cover – specific to paragliding.

For citizens members of the EU, the European Health Insurance Card (EHIC) entitles you to reduced-cost, sometimes free, medical treatment that becomes necessary while you’re in a European Economic Area (EEA) country or Switzerland. EHIC full info here.

You can be sure that we never give up! If the weather is bad in our area, we are going to move to a different one, with better weather. There are more than ten different flying spots up to 150 km around Algodonales, at the coast or inland.

The bad weather days can be also used for ground-handling practices or for theory lessons, and not only for the students but we also organise masterclasses for more experienced pilots.

If some tasks of a course are not completed, because of bad weather, it is possible to complete them on a different day. Some people extend their days.

Some people prefer to stay in the area for a few more days so they have more chances to complete the course or to fly and, in any case, they can spend this extra time on tourism.

Anyway, in the very unlikely event that due to bad weather, we have to cancel some days during a weekly course or tour, we will give you credit that will be discounted from the price of your next booking with us.

All are welcome. Algodonales is a beautiful area; There are massive amounts to keep everyone busy while you are flying. horse riding to kitesurfing. picnics & canoeing and beautiful white hillside villages of Andalucia, everything is out there to do and explore. We can organise tandem flights for non-flyers. They will need a car because we cannot guarantee a place for them in our vehicle.

In the rare event of bad weather and the inability to fly, we have some alternative activities to keep you entertained:

Touristic Routes, throughout typical white villages all over the Sierra, with visits to museums, Natural Parks, Gastronomic Stops,…
Visits to the nearest cities: Cadiz, Sevilla, Ronda, all of the great tourist interest.
Archeologic tours. In the nearby areas, there are many remains of ancient cultures such as Phoenicians, Romans, Moors…
Trekking: There are a lot of routes through Grazalema’s Natural Park with amazing landscapes, animals and forests.
Mountain bike: You can hire bikes to cross the routes through the Natural Park. One of which is an old disused railway with tunnels, bridges, stations,… and of course, always a restaurant to end your ride!
Canoe: You can also rent canoes enjoying the nearby lakes of Zahara.

You don’t. We provide transport to flying sites and for the retrieve. But if you want, you can hire a car to visit the surrounding areas, for your non-flying partners or if you cannot take on time our airport shuttle.

Our shop is fully stocked with all the equipment you may wish to purchase for flying and all at good Spanish prices. If you are interested in buying a glider please contact us in advance due to it could take weeks to get the items here.

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