Welcome in the Netherlands! - Read more....
The KNVvL welcomes all visiting pilots who are coming to fly in The Netherlands. Even though we are short on mountains, we do fly our paragliders ourselves here.
On this webpage you'll find all crucial information necessary for flying in The Netherlands. We wish you safe flights. In case of questions, please do not hesitate to send us a mail
In the recent years many pilots have resorted to soaring in The Netherlands. We find many visiting pilots coming to our popular soaring sites and we are more than happy to share the air.
However, if you fly the dunes, take care of them. For one: do not walk in the dunes, it is forbidden. The dunes are protected natural area's and are vital to protect us from the sea. Besides if you do so beisdes the official hiking trails, you like anyone else risk a fine.
Also stay away from flying constantly and close above the little beachhouses and above restaurants. If you have to pass them flying from A to B, do so with a good height and in safe distance.
The authorities are not always very happy and the legal situation is quite vonurable.
Some spots have very strict local rules, set by the local government and the site keepers. If you are visiting us, inform yourself and please respect these rules - we want to keep these spaces open. For us it is the only possibility in The Netherlands to fly without a winch or paramotor.
As an additional note: soaring at the dunes is not risk free.
It looks so easy, especially with the low sand dunes. However the risks come with stronger winds and to little experience taking off and landing in these conditions. Even if you are an experienced mountain pilot.
There is very little chance of a collapse at low altitude, but there's a major chance of the wind becoming too strong, due to a ventury effect. This causes pilots to be blown over the dunes in a very turbulent area. Please soar cautiously.
Besides it can be crowded and the types of gliders or parakites cause a hudge difference in flying speeds.
With an IPPI-3 equivalent licence you're more than welcome to take off. However if you have no or little experience taking-off, flying or landing in strong winds, we strongly recommend to take lessons!
There are some certified schools which offer soaring or parakiting lessons. If you have no soaring experience, we'd highly reccommend them. For further information where to find these schools send us a mail.
Below you find a brochure in German and English about dune soaring.
| Download | Type | Grootte |
|---|---|---|
| Soarfolder German | 3,6 MB | |
| Soarfolder English | 2,1 MB | |
| Soarfolder Dutch Nederlands | 2,1 MB |
The other popular take-off method in The Netherlands is winch towing. This take-off procedure is common for paragliding in flat area's. Many of our local schools and clubs offer winch towing facilities and will be more then happy to have you as a guest.
You'd be adviced to get in touch with them before arriving at their site, however. In The Netherlands, since winch towing is the main take-off procedure, we herfore have a separate licence . If you do not have an equivalent licence in combination of an IPPI-3 (or higher) licence, you are bound to take-off under supervision of a an Instructor at an authorized school of our 'Afdeling Paragliding-KNVvL'. You'll need an IPPI-5 to be allowed to fly further than glide-distance from the tow location.
For further information where to find these clubs or schools, look on the map at the homepage 'over' or send us a mail.