Understanding Wind: How It Acts on a Paraglider Wing

Wind is the single most important factor in paragliding. It is what holds you up, and the thing most likely to hurt you if you read it wrong. A wing flies because air moves across its aerofoil. So what matters is not simply whether the wind is strong or light, but whether it is steady, what angle it meets the slope at, and whether the terrain upwind is churning it up. At the same wind speed, different classes of wing behave differently. Lower-rated wings (EN-A, EN-B) tend to settle themselves and forgive pilot error. Higher-rated wings (EN-C, EN-D) respond faster and more sharply, but ask the pilot to stay actively involved throughout. The video below shows how wind acts on a wing in practice.

🌪️ Turbulence: where it comes from

💨 Avoiding blow-back behind the hill