Safety Briefing

1. What paragliding really is

Paragliding is an adventure activity with real risk. Serious injury and death are possible in this sport and have happened worldwide. No equipment, no experience and no organisation removes that risk completely — it can only be reduced.

What we do to keep it low:

• we fly only in suitable conditions, and we postpone when conditions are not right;
• we work with pilots and instructors who hold current licences and have real hours behind them, not just a certificate;
• we use certified equipment and keep track of reserve parachute repack dates;
• we brief before every flying day and debrief afterwards;
• we keep groups small — four to eight pilots on XC trips — so the guide actually sees every one of you.

2. Weather, and why plans change

Flying depends on the weather one hundred per cent. We do not guarantee a specific day, a number of flyable days, a specific launch site, or a flight duration. The programme can change at any moment — including moving to another location or cancelling the day.

When you get the decision:

• Tandem flights and single-day programmes — the evening before, by 20:00, and again in the morning if conditions have changed. We message you either way, even if nothing has changed.
• XC trips — each day is decided at the morning briefing, based on the forecast and the state of the group.
• Hike & fly — decided twice: before setting off, and again at the summit on the actual conditions.

The weather can turn while you are already at launch, or even in the air. That is normal in the mountains: a flight can be postponed five minutes before take-off, and a task can be shortened mid-flight.

3. Who decides whether you fly

The final decision on whether a flight happens is made by the pilot or guide, on safety grounds. That decision is not up for debate — not at launch, not afterwards, and not by pointing at someone else who took off.

The grounds can be anything: wind, thermal activity, visibility, the state of the launch, the state of the equipment, the state of the person, too much traffic in the air. The pilot is not obliged to justify the decision on the spot — the pilot is obliged to make it in favour of safety.

For XC trips a stronger rule applies, set out in the XC Trips section: in the air you are pilot in command, and the decisions are yours, not the guide's.

4. Instructions from the pilot and staff

You must follow the instructions of the pilot, the instructor and the ground staff — before, during and after the flight. This applies to everyone: tandem passengers, XC pilots and hike & fly participants.

• at launch — how to stand, when to run, when to stop;
• in the air — radio calls, changes to the task, the call to land;
• on landing — how to put your feet down, where to walk afterwards, where not to stand;
• on the ground — where you may and may not be, how to handle equipment, where not to walk on the launch field.

If you systematically ignore instructions, behave dangerously towards yourself or others, fly above your level or disrupt the group, we may stand you down for the day or remove you from the trip entirely, with no refund. It is a last resort and we have used it rarely — but it exists.

5. Health and medical conditions

A flight puts a load on the body: the run at launch, G-force in turns, altitude and pressure change, cold, and sometimes a firm landing on your feet. This does not rule out flying for almost anyone, but there are things we need to know beforehand.

Tell us before booking and check with a doctor if you have:

• heart or vascular conditions, arrhythmia, high or low blood pressure;
• epilepsy, fainting episodes, neurological conditions;
• balance disorders, chronic ear conditions, a recent ear infection;
• spinal or joint injuries and surgery, recent fractures;
• osteoporosis, recurrent dislocations, fresh sprains;
• asthma, diabetes;
• pregnancy;
• panic attacks, significant anxiety, claustrophobia;
• surgery under general anaesthetic in the last 3 months;
• scuba diving in the last 24 hours.

You are responsible for the accuracy of what you tell us. If a material condition turns out to have been concealed, we may cancel the flight with no refund.

6. Alcohol, substances and medication

No alcohol and no substances affecting reaction or judgement for 12 hours before the flight and throughout the flying day. That includes last night: residual alcohol and a hangover slow your reaction, reduce altitude tolerance and dehydrate you.

Prescription medication is not banned, but you must tell us if it affects attention, reaction time, blood pressure or the vestibular system.

7. Insurance — mandatory

Insurance is mandatory for all participants of XC trips, hike & fly and courses. Without confirmation of a policy we do not let you fly — no exceptions.

The policy must cover:

• paragliding explicitly, by name. Standard travel insurance usually excludes "extreme sports" — such a policy does not qualify;
• medical treatment and hospitalisation — at least €100,000;
• search and rescue, including helicopter evacuation — in the mountains this is the largest cost by far;
• medical repatriation to your home country;
• validity in the country of the trip — a policy valid only inside the EU will not help you in Georgia, Nepal or Colombia.

For high-altitude and remote programmes you also need altitude cover to at least the altitude stated in the programme, and no remote-area exclusion.

Tandem passengers are covered by the policy we arrange for the flight. That does not replace your own medical or travel insurance and does not cover repatriation — if full cover matters to you, take out your own policy.

8. Who actually performs the flight

Georgia Paragliding (Sole Entrepreneur Serhii Mykhailiuta, Georgia) organises and coordinates flights, training and trips. The flying, training and guiding itself is performed by independent professional pilots and instructors who hold current licences and act on their own responsibility as pilots in command.

We select them with reasonable care, we have worked with the same people for years, and we are responsible for the organisation. We do not become a party to their professional decisions in the air.

Cable cars, retrieve drivers, local guides, launch site owners, airlines and medical providers are independent companies operating on their own terms.

9. Photos and video

We film flights, briefings and trip life. We use the material on social media, on the website and in presentations.

If you do not want footage of you published, tell us before the flight or at any point afterwards. We will remove it from publication, no questions asked.

On XC trips and hike & fly you can use your own camera freely. On tandem flights a hand-held camera is not allowed: anything dropped at launch goes into the lines. Chest or helmet mounts only, agreed with the pilot before the flight.

10. Personal belongings

You are responsible for your personal belongings — phones, cameras, glasses, watches, keys. We do not compensate items lost or damaged in flight, at launch, on landing or during retrieve.

• phone — on a lanyard or in a zipped pocket only;
• sunglasses — on a retainer strap; ordinary glasses come off during the launch run;
• empty all open pockets before launch, including keys and coins;
• earrings, chains and scarves are better left on the ground.

11. Children and minors

Tandem flights — from 5 years old and at least 25 kg. The child must understand the pilot's commands and be willing to walk up to launch. A parent or legal guardian must be present and give consent.

If a child gets scared at launch and refuses to fly, that is fine — we do not persuade and we do not push. The flight is postponed or cancelled under the normal cancellation rules.

XC trips, hike & fly and courses — 18+. Under 18 only by separate written parental consent and at the instructor's discretion.

12. Tandem flight — what a passenger needs to know

You do not control the wing and you are not expected to know anything. The pilot does everything. Your job is a few steps at launch, sitting in the harness, and putting your feet down on landing.

What to wear. Closed sports shoes with a fixed heel — trainers or light boots. Flip-flops, sandals and heels do not work. Long trousers. A jacket or windproof layer: it is 5–10 °C colder up there. Gloves from autumn through spring. We provide the helmet.

Weight. From 25 to 125 kg, including clothes and shoes (a surcharge applies from 80 kg). This is not about the strength of the wing: the heavier the total, the faster and more powerful the launch run, and the narrower the window of conditions that works. Close to the upper limit you need reasonable fitness to run confidently down an uneven slope.

How the launch works. The pilot clips you in, checks the carabiners and harness, and explains the command. On "run" you run forward down the slope and do not sit down and do not jump until your feet leave the ground by themselves. The run is anything from a few steps to a few dozen metres on a grass slope that may be uneven.

How the landing works. The pilot will tell you in advance when to get out of the harness and put your feet down. Until then, stay seated. On the ground take a few steps forward and move aside where the pilot points.

If you feel unwell or frightened, tell the pilot immediately. This is a normal situation and easy to fix: the pilot will level off, stop turning and head for the landing field. Wingovers and spirals happen only if you ask for them — if you did not ask, they will not happen.

If you get motion sick: look at the horizon, not down and not sideways, breathe steadily, and tell the pilot — he will fly level. Do not eat a heavy meal in the hour before the flight, but do not fly on an empty stomach either.

A flight can be postponed on the spot — at launch, five minutes before take-off. That is not a whim: mountain conditions change faster than a car drives.

13. XC Trips — for independent pilots

Entry requirements. XC trips are for independent licensed pilots with their own equipment. You must launch unassisted, work thermals on your own and land safely in unfamiliar terrain. Detailed requirements on hours and experience are on the XC Trips page.

What the guide does: analyses the forecast, chooses the area, sets the task for the day, briefs, supports on the radio and debriefs the track afterwards. That is guidance and coaching by advice — not a command and not a clearance. When the guide says it is working over there, that is information, not a guarantee that it is safe for you, right now, on your wing, with your hours.

Nobody can make you take off. If you are not comfortable, you do not fly. If you are not comfortable doing what the guide suggests, you do not do it. Declining is a normal pilot decision, not a failure.

The guide can stop you: change the task, change the route, refuse a launch or stand you down for the day. He can say no — he cannot say go.

The task and someone else's track. The task is set in two or three versions of different difficulty so that everyone flies at their own level. Chasing someone else's track is not on: what a pilot with a thousand hours on a D-class wing pulled off is not evidence that it is doable for you.

Mandatory equipment:

• wing, harness, reserve parachute, helmet;
• vario or GPS with track logging;
• a dual-band radio transmitting and receiving on 144.000 and 433.000 MHz. The working frequency is issued at the briefing before flying;
• charged phone and power bank;
• clothing for the weather and for altitude, gloves, sunglasses, sunscreen;
• water and food for the day.

Reserve parachute. Mandatory. The last repack date is the pilot's own responsibility — we recommend at least every 12 months, and more often before a heavy flying season. We may ask to see the seal and the date.

Radio contact and reporting your landing. Once you are down you must report immediately: alive, coordinates, condition. Pack up after that, not before. Until you have reported in, as far as we are concerned you are in an emergency.

Retrieve. Pick-up from your landing is included in the trip: a vehicle collects you from the field during working hours and within the normal operating area. It is logistics and convenience, not a rescue service. Accurate coordinates and a clear description of the access road speed up retrieve enormously.

Landing in unfamiliar terrain. Assess your field early and with height in hand. Watch for: power lines and poles — you see them late; animals and people in the field; slope and wind at ground level; fences and irrigation ditches; freshly ploughed or wet ground. Do not land on crops if you have an alternative, and do not leave a conflict with the landowner behind you.

Local rules and restricted airspace. Every country has its own airspace, restrictions and border regimes. We brief you on them, but responsibility for a violation stays with the pilot. In Georgia, pay particular attention to border areas.

Altitude and cold. On XC flights in Georgia cloudbase is often above 4,000 m, and temperature drops by roughly 0.65 °C per 100 m of climb. Warm gloves and layers are mandatory even on a hot day at the bottom.

14. Hike & Fly — walking up

Assess your fitness honestly. You walk up with your equipment on your back — 10 to 15 kg on top of a normal pack. You need to be able to walk at a steady pace for a few hours and still have the strength and focus left for the flight. A tired pilot on an unfamiliar launch is the main cause of trouble in hike & fly.

What to bring:

• boots or trail runners with foot support and grippy soles, broken in beforehand;
• water — at least 1.5–2 litres. By the time you feel thirsty you are already dehydrated;
• sunglasses, cap and sunscreen — carried with you, not just applied at the bottom;
• a warm layer and a windproof: it is always colder at the top and in the air than on the way up;
• a dry spare t-shirt — flying in a wet base layer is cold and dangerous;
• power bank, head torch, minimal first aid kit.

Launching from an unprepared site. We look at the site beforehand on satellite imagery and topographic maps, but the final assessment is made on foot: slope, surface, what is behind you, what is in front, where you get blown if the launch goes wrong. The rule is simple: grass, not scree. If a site does not read clearly, we do not launch from it.

Communication on the route. We move as a group, on the radio, with agreed check points on the way up. If the group stretches out, we regroup at the agreed point, not at the summit.

Insurance for hike & fly must additionally cover mountain search and rescue and helicopter evacuation — see Insurance. This is not a formality: walking out with an injury is not possible in this terrain.

15. Emergencies and communication

Duty number during a trip: +995 551 355 000. This is an emergency number, not a booking line — for bookings write to WhatsApp or Telegram. The direct number of the guide running your group is given at the briefing before the first flying day — that is your first point of contact in the field.

If you lose radio contact. Silence on the radio is not an instruction. Continue with the last agreed task, or land if in doubt. What to do on loss of contact is agreed at the morning briefing and stands until it is changed.

If you land off-plan. Report immediately: alive, coordinates, condition. Pack up after that. Until you have reported in, as far as we are concerned you are in an emergency.

How we keep track of the group. Live tracking runs over the cellular network. If there is no mobile coverage and a pilot has not reported in, we wait a maximum of about one hour — the exact time depends on the circumstances in which contact was lost, where the pilot was last seen and what the weather is doing. After that we notify the rescue services and a search operation begins.

The decision to call a helicopter is taken by one of the instructors if he judges it necessary in the situation and if a helicopter is available in the flying area. In some regions helicopter evacuation does not physically exist — we tell you this at the briefing before the trip starts.

If you witness someone else's accident. Do not land next to them if it is dangerous for you. Note the coordinates, report to the guide by radio or WhatsApp and stay in contact. Do not start an evacuation on your own unless you are sure of what you are doing.

What retrieve does and does not do. Retrieve is a vehicle that collects you from a field. Everything to do with search, helicopters, hospitals, medical evacuation and repatriation is paid for by your insurance.

16. What you sign, and when

At booking — a "I have read the safety briefing" tick box next to the box confirming the booking terms. The confirmation is written into the message you send us, so it is a written trail and not just a click in a browser.

At the briefing before flying — verbal confirmation. The guide goes through the key points out loud and records the confirmation on the group list.

Before an XC trip or hike & fly starts — you sign the participant document: insurance declaration, confirmation of your level and equipment, acceptance of risk, medical declaration and emergency contacts. Every participant signs it before the first flying day.

If you are not prepared to sign the participant document, we will not be able to take you on the trip — and it is fairer to find that out in advance than on site. The deposit in that case is returned under the cancellation rules.

17. Documents before the trip — what to download and what to send

Three steps:

1. Download and print. A4, plain black and white is fine.
2. Fill it in and sign. Block capitals, by hand. Fields are in sections 1, 3, 4, 5, 6 and 11; the signature is in section 13. For participants under 18 a parent or legal guardian signs.
3. Scan or photograph every page and send it to us with the other documents listed below.

What exactly to send:

• the completed and signed participant document — all pages, scanned or clearly photographed. Blurred shots where the text cannot be read do not work for us;
• a photo of the main page of your passport — the one you will travel on;
• a photo of your pilot licence or certificate — both sides if there is data on the back;
• optionally, your insurance policy. Send it and we will look at the wording and tell you if we spot a gap. That is a friendly heads-up, not a confirmation that the policy is adequate: responsibility for your insurance stays with you.

If anything in the document is unclear, or you are not prepared to sign a particular clause — write to us before you send it. We will go through it together. There is no need to sign blind, and quietly not signing is the worst option: we simply will not be able to take you, and we will only find out at the last moment.

18. The legal part

This briefing is an informational and operational document. It explains the risks and the rules, but it does not replace the booking terms: XC Trips Booking Terms & Conditions and Terms & Conditions. If a discrepancy appears between the texts, the booking terms prevail — tell us and we will bring them back into line.

By accepting this briefing you confirm that you understand and voluntarily accept the risks inherent in paragliding, including risks arising from ordinary negligence in the provision of the services.

These rules and any dispute arising from them are governed by the law of Georgia. The place of dispute resolution is the courts of Georgia, in Tbilisi.