Wings & Waves 2026 / 27 NZ Courses and Trips to further your flying

5 days ago

5 min read

A good flying trip does more than add new sites to the logbook. It builds judgement, sharpens skills, and puts time around other pilots who are working on the same thing: flying better and coming home safer.

After a fantastic 2026 European course season in France and Italy, Wings & Waves has released the first New Zealand trips and courses for the 2026/27 season. The new programme starts with three practical options: a January 2027 ladies inland flying course, a January 2027 Wanaka thermal course, and a ground handling clinic with Joe Ward and Eva in Auckland.

Each course has a different focus, but the theme is the same. More confidence, better decision-making, and safer flying in real conditions.

The 2026 27 NZ season builds on a strong European year

The 2026 European courses in France and Italy gave pilots the chance to fly new terrain, spend focused time with coaches, and progress in a supportive group setting. That kind of trip is often where the biggest improvements happen - and where the most fun is to be had.

At a home site, it is easy to keep flying the same pattern. On a course, the whole day has a learning focus. Pilots talk through the forecast, watch how others assess conditions, learn from each flight, and build better habits.

The new Wings & Waves 2026 27 NZ Courses and Trips for Safer Flying bring that same approach back to New Zealand for the 2026/27 season.

The focus areas are especially useful for pilots wanting to move from simple coastal or familiar-site flying into more varied inland conditions:

Reading weather with more confidence
Improving launch and landing choices
learning beginner and advenced thermalling skills
Building stronger ground handling skills
Understanding thermals and active air
Making better decisions before and during a flight
Flying with a group in a coached setting

These are not just “nice to have” skills. They are the foundation of safer flying.

January 2027 ladies inland flying course

The January 2027 ladies course is aimed at pilots who want to build inland flying skills in a focused, encouraging environment.

Inland flying can feel like a big step. Conditions often ask more of the pilot. Air can be more active, terrain choices matter more, and good pre-flight planning becomes essential. A coached course gives structure to that progression.

The course is designed to help pilots develop confidence around the core parts of inland flying, including weather awareness, site choice, active piloting, and group learning.

For many pilots, the value of a course like this is the combination of coaching and shared experience. Questions get asked that might not come up on a normal flying day. Decisions are discussed openly. The result is a clearer understanding of why a flight is working, or why staying on the ground is the right call.

You can view the course here: January 2027 Ladies Inland Flying Course

Wanaka thermal course in January 2027

Wanaka is one of New Zealand’s classic flying areas, and it is a fitting setting for a course focused on thermalling.

Thermal flying rewards patience, awareness, and good technique. It also asks pilots to make constant decisions. Where is the lift coming from? Is the climb organised or broken? What is the wind doing at height? Where is the safe line back to landing?

The January 2027 Wanaka thermal course gives pilots a chance to work on those questions with guidance.

A thermal course can help pilots move beyond simply “finding lift” and towards understanding what is happening around them. That includes reading clouds, terrain, drift, cycles, and other pilots. It also includes knowing when the air is not suitable for your level or goals.

Key learning areas may include:

Finding and centring lift
Managing active air
Understanding thermal triggers
Choosing safe transitions
Reading changing weather
Planning flights around landing options

For pilots wanting to extend their flying, this kind of course can be a major step forward. It is also a strong safety investment, because better thermal skills usually mean better margins and calmer decisions.

You can view the course here: Wanaka Thermal Course 2027

Ground handling clinic with Joe Ward and Eva

Ground handling is one of the most useful skills a pilot can practise. It improves launches, builds wing control, and makes pilots more comfortable when conditions are not perfectly smooth.

The ground handling clinic with Joe Ward and Eva puts time into the part of flying that often gets rushed. Before every good flight, the wing has to come up cleanly, settle above the pilot, and respond to input. The better that process feels, the safer and more relaxed the launch becomes.

Ground handling is also where pilots can safely learn a lot about their wing. How does it react to brake input? What happens when it surges? How does it behave in wind shifts? What does too much input feel like?

Those lessons carry directly into flying.

A focused clinic can support pilots working on:

Cleaner forward and reverse launches
confident ground handling in changing conditions
Better wing awareness
quick reactions to surges to prevnt collapses
Safer launch decisions
More efficient pre-flight preparation

This is useful for newer pilots and experienced pilots alike. Even high-hour flyers benefit from sharpening the basics.

You can view the clinic here: Ground Handling Clinic with Joe Ward and Eva

Why trips and courses improve safety

Safety in paragliding is rarely about one single skill. It comes from many small habits working together.

Courses and trips help because they create time for those habits to form. Pilots do not just fly. They brief, observe, ask, review, and repeat. That rhythm builds judgement.

A good coached trip also gives pilots access to experience in the moment. Forecasts can be compared with what is actually happening on site. Launch conditions can be discussed before anyone commits. Flight choices can be reviewed while the details are still fresh.

That kind of learning is hard to replace.

Better flying is often quieter flying: fewer rushed launches, fewer surprises, and more decisions made early.

The social side matters too. Trips are fun. Shared flying days, new sites, and time away with other pilots all add to the experience. But the best trips also leave pilots with skills they keep using long after the course ends.

A season to learn, fly, and build better habits

The Wings & Waves 2026/27 New Zealand courses give pilots clear ways to improve before and during the main summer flying season.

Whether the goal is inland flying, thermalling, or better ground handling, the value is the same: more understanding, more control, and better safety margins.

The trips will be fun, but the real benefit is what comes home afterwards. Stronger skills. Sharper judgement. Safer flying.