XC 1 – 16 to 25 October
XC1 Guiding Fees: £1350
Fees include XC guidance, Daily briefing & mountain transport.
XC1 Duration: 10 flying days
Perched at 2,400m in the Indian Himalayas, Bir is one of the world’s highest official paragliding takeoffs, renowned for its reliable conditions and aweinspiring views.
This is mountain XC flying at its best, with strong, consistent thermals averaging 3–5 m/s. Perfect for pilots with XC experience looking to level up, we dive into intermediate and advanced skills like Speed-To-Fly, High Altitude techniques, and Team Tactics.
Each day we set a task, launch together, and fly under radio guidance as a coordinated team. One Escape Paragliding guide leads the front, while others support the mid pack and rear, rotating daily to share diverse insights and teaching styles.
With the right conditions, we aim to fly every day, pushing your skills further in one of the most iconic flying arenas on earth.
In these incredible and wild mountains, we keep our groups small to ensure we can fly as a tight knit group. With a 3:1 client to guide ratio, we not only create a more personal and focused experience, but also improve safety, allowing us to closely support every pilot throughout the day.
There are 3 main ways to get to Bir:
1. Domestic flight from Delhi to Dharamshala and from there you can get a taxi to bir.
2. Overnight bus from Delhi -ISBT Kashmiri gate, which will take you directly to Bir.
3. Fly to Amritsar or Chandigarh and get a private car to Bir.
There are many lovely hostel, homestay and hotels in Bir.
Most of the places are on the Main Street of Bir or just 5 mins away.
We will be staying in a lovely hotel, if you would like to book the same let us know.
Takeoff in Bir is at 2400m ASL, It is ideal for all major wind directions.
Once you arrive at the takeoff, there is a very short walk up the hill to get to the best launch spot.
There we will have a briefing for the day and set a task for us to follow. After this, we will enjoy a wonderful day flying together.
SELF RETRIEVE
We don’t offer retrieve as it is highly likley that you will make it back to the main landing in Bir at the end of each day. If you do land out, then you will find friendly and welcoming people, who are more than happy to help you find a taxi back home.
There are 3 main ways to get to Bir:
1. Domestic flight from Delhi to Dharamshala and from there you can get a taxi to bir.
2. Overnight bus from Delhi -ISBT Kashmiri gate, which will take you directly to Bir.
3. Fly to Amritsar or Chandigarh and get a private car to Bir.
There are many lovely hostel, homestay and hotels in Bir.
Most of the places are on the Main Street of Bir or just 5 mins away.
We will be staying in a lovely hotel, if you would like to book the same let us know.
Takeoff in Bir is at 2400m ASL, It is ideal for all major wind directions.
Once you arrive at the takeoff, there is a very short walk up the hill to get to the best launch spot.
There we will have a briefing for the day and set a task for us to follow. After this, we will enjoy a wonderful day flying together.
There are 3 main ways to get to Bir:
1. Domestic flight from Delhi to Dharamshala and from there you can get a taxi to bir.
2. Overnight bus from Delhi -ISBT Kashmiri gate, which will take you directly to Bir.
3. Fly to Amritsar or Chandigarh and get a private car to Bir.
There are many lovely hostel, homestay and hotels in Bir.
Most of the places are on the Main Street of Bir or just 5 mins away.
We will be staying in a lovely hotel, if you would like to book the same let us know.
Takeoff in Bir is at 2400m ASL, It is ideal for all major wind directions.
Once you arrive at the takeoff, there is a very short walk up the hill to get to the best launch spot.
There we will have a briefing for the day and set a task for us to follow. After this, we will enjoy a wonderful day flying together.
Please be aware of your own physical and mental limits throughout the tour and on each flight. We aim to do a lot of flying and this can be tiring, especially in heat that you may not be used to, so please be realistic and fly within your comfort and skill levels, cut the flight plan early if you feel tired. We can always change our flight plan to suit what you feel happy dealing with.
We expect that you will arrive with a functional paraglider, harness, reserve parachute, helmet, and Vario/GPS.
The weather is nice but it is really cold while flying, thus we recommend you to fly in thick layers, proper down jackets, and thick or heated gloves.
We don’t provide trackers in India as Satellite GPS Devices are banned in INDIA!
It is essential that you have travel insurance that covers you in respect of the following:
House thermals after takeoff are very reliable, at the start of the day we will step climb up the ridge to get to a high point as the day reaches max heating. From there we will set out following the ridges west and completing an out and return flight of around 100km.
The usual flight will be 100km out and return with a first turn point at Dharamshala, from there we will turn back and head toward 360 which is a very distinct mountaintop. Then it’s back home to Bir, where we will land in the main landing field and go for a meal and a debrief.
Josh is a highly skilled pilot and a natural guide.
He possesses a profound understanding of XC and competition flying across diverse environments.
Kanan is a talented pilot and truly enjoys guiding.
Her love for flying and excellent organisational skills make all of our courses run smoothly anywhere in the world.
Iain is a very experienced pilot and has an amazing understanding of the mountains.
With a very analytical process, he has an amazing talent for planning the day and using all forecasts and models to his advantage.
Escape Paragliding Ltd
4 Southey Court
Keswick, Cumbria ,CA12 5FG
