Tips and Tricks for Traveling with your paramotor
Traveling with your paramotor is one of the most freeing and magical experiences you can have.
Here is 5 tips and tricks to traveling with your paramotor to make your dream adventure go even smoother!
1: Visit Paramotor fly-ins
If you can schedule your trip to coincide with a paramotor fly-in you will be greatly rewarded for going to the sometimes out of the way locations.
Fly-ins are events where 100s of pilots all gather to fly and talk paramotor! These events are a chance to meet pilots from all around the country and see almost every kind of equipment available!
Fly-ins are usually held in scenic places that are a joy to fly around and explore!
One of my personal favorites is the Salton Sea Fly-in Held in southern California every February.
Here is the link to the Salton Sea fly-in 2020 event page:
https://www.trikebuggy.com/sites/boogie_ss.htm
If you haven’t been in a paraglider “swarm” of 100+ pilots, this is the place to do it!
2: Ask local pilots about good places to fly
Asking the locals about where to fly is one of the easiest ways to see the best an area has to offer, often with a new friend!
If you are in a new area, look up the closest paramotor school to you and give them a call. Many instructors are happy to show you around and give you the DO’s and DON’T’s of the area.
If any traveling pilots are in the Central Texas Area feel free to give us a call at Texas Paramotor! We have a field for you to fly from!
3: Bring Extra… Of everything
When packing what you need to fly on your adventure trip, remember it’s worth the extra space to bring extra of what you will need.
You don’t want a broken prop to ruin your long-awaited flying trip, do you? Bring another one just in case, so you can bolt it on and keep flying!
This goes for our beloved 2 stroke oil as well, bring a few extra quarts because you always end up flying more than you planned. And our specialty high performance oil can sometimes be hard to find in a pinch.
Also think about putting some extra carburetor gaskets and a spare spark plug in your travel kit if you want to have all of your bases covered.
4: Flying commercial airlines with your paramotor?
Flying commercial with your paramotor can be a tricky subject, some people have gotten away with it, and others haven’t. The problem is that airlines do not want any gasoline on the plane, so you can bring your wing and helmet, but that used motor might be a problem.
Even if you emptied the gas tank and wiped down the whole motor there would still be trace amount of gasoline. Some airlines have different policies regarding this, which is why it is such a gray area.
You are running the risk of showing up for your flight and them denying you at the baggage check in. Personally, this risk has always been to great for me to attempt this mode of transport.
The Solution? Ship your gear ahead of time
You can always ship your gear ahead of time which is the safest option. Depending on where you are going, I find fares for the paramotor are usually 200-400$ roundtrip to anywhere in the Americas.
A road trip is usually the most convenient option but you can’t drive everywhere!
5: Remember to always check your airspace before you take off!
Checking your airspace before you launch is imperative when traveling to different areas. That perfect field you are eyeing could be right next to an air force base!
If you are rusty on your airspace check out our writeup about it in our blog section!
Thank you for reading! I hope this helped spark some travel ideas of your own. I hope to see you all in the air someday!
Want to learn how to fly?
We have new classes starting every month of the year! With course schedules to fit anyone from weekend warriors to someone who wants to knock it all out in 10 days.
Give us a call and we can schedule your training! We only offer a limited number of class seats per month, which can book up in advance. To reserve your class it is only a 25% deposit to lock in your training dates!
Call now and we can make sure we have a spot for you!
I look forward to helping you get in the air!
-Ryan Glowka
512-545-6280
www.TexasParamotorTraining.com
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