yawningdog

I have only just returned to look at this thread and noticed all the comments. Thanks very much for all the replies, very useful advice. I can't wait to get cracking with some training, hopefully starting in the Autumn. Safe flying to all.

By the way, a couple of other things to bear in mind: 1) If the base of controlled airspace is 1,500ft, you may find loads of GA traffic trying to squeeze under as well. Although I'm not a paramotor pilot (yet), I do have a PPL, and would recommend that you stay as low as possible, say 500ft. GA traffic will probably bunch between 1,000ft & 1,500ft. 2) You may provide a radar return to ATC. As you probably don't have a transponder, ATC will not know if you are in controlled airspace or not. It might be helpful to warn them of your presence on frequency.

Hi there Marky Thanks for your reply. Interesting points. But how does that equate in "time? I see that training time quoted on school websites varies. It seems to me that anything up to 12 days. That feels like quite a long time to me, especially when one is trying to juggle work & flyable weather. About 10 years ago I did a couple of paragliding training days down at Steyning Bowl, nr Brighton. I wonder if it might be realistic to assume that I could become a "safe" paramotor pilot with 6 days training, or is that unreasonable? The theoretical subjects including airmanship should hopefully already be covered (excluding paramotor specific stuff). Also, considering the weather, how much flying per year do most paramotor pilots achieve in the UK? By the way, thanks Marky for being so complimentary about Lymington. I hope you get back into the air soon. Guy McNair-Wilson

Hi there. I'd like to learn to fly a paramotor & I already have a PPL with about 400hrs. Do you think my training time could be reduced because of my PPL? How long do you think it could take considering average ability? I may be visiting Spain later this year, can you recommend a good school over there. Otherwise, as I live near Lymington in Hampshire, it seems that the Isle of Wight might be the closest school to me.? Thanks.