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Contact the IHPA Training & Flight Safety Officer The first thing you need to do after returning home from your training course is to contact the
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so that you can brief him on your progress and to have a training Coach assigned to you. He can also help you with sourcing a suitable glider, harness, helmet and all the other kit you need to fly safely. Student and Novice hang glider pilots are in a precarious situation when they return to Ireland to continue their training as there are no schools or instructors to guide their progress. Student and Novice pilots must therefore exercise extreme caution in their training from this point on, and may only fly under the direct supervision of their nominated Coach. Join the IHPA - It's free! If you have not already done so then please download the New Members membership application forms and waivers, and return them to the IHPA. Membership is free to new members and students for the first year (up to 31st March.) The IHPA can not assign a Coach to you until you are a member and have signed the indemnety waivers. With so few pilots spread out all around the country there are no clubs, as such, that new pilots can join. The IHPA acts as an umbrella organisation, keeping members in touch with each other and with what is happening on the Irish scene, organizing insurance and tackling problems and issues as they arise, and generally looking out for pilot's interests wherever necessary. Join the IHPA mailing list and keep in touch with other pilots. Apply for a Safe Pro 2 Pilot Rating When you return to Ireland you must submit your IHPA Student's Training Record & Log Book to the IHPA Training & Flight Safety Officer and apply for a Safe Pro 2 (or 1) Pilot Rating. You will be required to complete a written multiple-choice-question exam paper before you are awarded your Pilot Rating. The Safe Pro 2 exam is very simple and should present no difficulty to any student who has read the appropriate chapters of Denis Pagen's Hang Glider Training Manual. You can prepare for your exam by reading through the Safe Pro 2 Exam Study Guide, which will tell you exactly what to expect without actually giving you the answers. Continuing Your Training in Ireland It is imperative that you do not attempt to fly or train on your own once you return home. You risk serious injury, or worse, if you do. The IHPA has nominated hang gliding Coaches and senior pilots who will be happy to help you continue your training and learning. Contact the
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and he will put you in touch with someone willing to help. It is important to understand that the IHPA Coaches and senior pilots who are willing to mentor you through your further training do not accept any responsibility or liability for your safety. They are not instructors and offer their advice strictly on a member to member basis. You are responsible for your own safety at all times. Irish weather conditions are very different to those you will have experienced during your training course abroad. The weather in Ireland can and does change rapidly. This is a serious hazard for the inexperienced pilot. Student and Novice pilots are required by the IHPA to specifically ask their Coach or senior pilot for a full briefing on the weather and local conditions, and how it is expected to change through the day. Student and Novice pilots are also required to specifically ask for a full site briefing, detailing the hazards in both the take-off and landing areas. Student and Novice pilots may only launch from sites where the landing field is visible from the take-off area and within easy glide of the take-off. Student and Novice pilots are required to plant a clearly visible wind sock in the middle of the landing field before they launch. Student and Novice pilots are required to attach a broad red ribbon to the kingpost of their gliders to identify them to other pilots as inexperienced pilots with limited knowledge or ability to manoeuvre. Student and Novice pilots are required to be in radio contact with their Coach or mentor at all times during their flight so that thay can receive guidance and advice on the changing weather conditions. Log Books It is essential to maintain an accurate log book while you are training abroad (and at home) if you wish to apply for a Pilot Rating. Your log book will also help the IHPA Coaches to assess your ability and progress each time you come out to train. You will initially be assessed on an easy training slope and given all the help you need to perfect your take-off and landing techniques before you will be allowed to progress to the higher, more technical and challanging sites. Student Training Record & Log Books are available from the
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free of charge. It is in your own interest to progress your training as rapidly as possible and to quickly complete all the tasks and requirements for Safe Pro 3, as until then, you are tied to flying only in the presence of your nominated Coach or mentor. Once you have been awarded your Safe Pro 3 Pilot Rating you are free to fly with any other pilots and are no longer required to fly under supervision. That said, you should never fly alone.
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