Paragliding in Madeira
Welcome to Madeira Island! Please help us keep our sport safe, take the following advice into consideration before flying:
WE FLY ON THE LEE SIDE
Madeira is a very peculiar place in terms of flying. The normal is to fly on the lee side of Madeira, taking in account the meteorological wind direction.
The predominant wind direction on the Archipelago is northeast, or sometimes north. In those conditions we usually fly on the south or southwest of the island.
That's because the island orography is able to block and deviate the wind around and above. Stormy weather is usually from the southwest. This means that the south coast will be swept by east or west winds depending on how the island wake turbulence is generated.
Attention! Flying in the lee side of the islands protects us but there are limits. If the meteorological wind is too strong, it will overpass the mountains and flow down the south coast sweeping everything on its way towards the sea. The local pilots are very experienced on these phenomenon’s and will know when and where it's safe to fly, as also know how to identify if the conditions suddenly change. Reading wind signs at the sea surface is of upmost importance in all flights at Madeira.
AEROLOGY IS IMPORTANT
The sharp edges and abrupt orography of the island is a spectacular flying scenery but also to be taken into account regarding wind direction, rotors and twirls. Pilots should beware when flying near the terrain.
CONTROLLED AIRSPACE
The Southeast coast of Madeira is interdicted to free flight due to the International Airport within the 5nm (9km) radius around the facilities. This means expressively no flying allowed between Garajau and Caniçal (Ponta de Sao Lourenço). The rest of the island is flyable but it's still controlled airspace. So the Airport Control Tower must be informed of the flight plan and airspace to be used, maximum flying altitude and duration of the activity.
LANDING ON PROMENADES
Please do not land on promenades it is forbidden.
TAKEOFFS, LANDINGS AND BOOTS
There are several takeoffs in Madeira. Most of them are located on the south coast. That's due to the existence of more and better landings, quicker to get to and better flying conditions due to the island wind protection. The landings are invariably beaches. Madeira beaches are mainly made of pebble (rocks). Therefore, paragliding boots are mandatory in all flights! Pendulum control should be very good because you can't come in to land uncontrolled, specially if there's zero wind at the landing. Pilots should be able to manoeuvre and land on 100m long strips.
!!! REGARDING FLYING ON THE NORTH COAST !!!
Please take in consideration the following before attempting to fly on the north coast:
- Safe landing zones are very scarce, they are often very short, narrow and rocky.
- High tide levels can make them even shorter or completely disappear.
-The cloud base tends to form at low altitude, if you’re flying and it happens below your flight level it can be disorientating
- The sea state ranges from moderate, 1.25 to 2.5 meters wave height, to very rought, 4 to 6 meters wave height. In the event of landing in the water it will be extremely difficult to reach the shore.
- Especially with lower pressure, wind speed and direction can change and consequently its effects on the sharp edges and abrupt orography of the coast can originate dangerous rotors and whirls.
We strongly advice all pilots, regardless of their level of experience, to contact AVLM before attempting to fly on the north coast to double check the weather conditions.
