Powered Paragliding: Kiting

[At Flight Test we love every aspect of flight. Our goal is to inspire you to take on every path of aviation, but to always do it in the safest way possible. Please always seek professional training before attempting any aspect of general aviation.]

As you may know, here at Flite Test, we are committed to bringing you quality content in the field of RC, but have recently added a general aviation aspect as well. On a recent trip down to Florida, Josh, Alex and Christian collaborated with Aviator PPG to capture new RC footage at a municipal airport. But that’s not all they did. Josh and Alex learned some basics of powered paragliding aka paramotor!

The basic aspect of paramotor they learned about and attempted was kiting.

(NOTE: Learning ALL aspects of paramotor/paragliding takes several classes and many hours, so we only are sharing a morsel of the entirety of the sport. We insist upon taking an actual course before going out and buying paramotor equipment!)

Kiting is a technique that you will learn in beginner courses, but will always go back to as you get more advanced in the sport. Kiting teaches basic principles to control the wing while having your feet safely on the ground. Because it is a risky activity, it is important to learn proper control and movement to keep the wing fully inflated and stable during flight. This is done by using the left and right toggles, which flexes the wing to advance, fall back or turn.

Alex and Josh learned during their “lesson,” it doesn’t take brute strength to practice kiting. As Eric said, “You’re dancing with the wings...It’s the man.” Let it lead you. Wing moves right, you move right. Wing moves left, you move left. It’s that simple. Okay, maybe not THAT simple as you can see as Josh and Alex attempt it in the video.

Have you been inspired to try out paramotor after watching some of our videos with the Aviator PPG team? Or are you a powered paraglider expert? Share your experiences or excitement with us in the comments!