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Static winch tow launching for paragliders originated on the Island, but faded out with the departure of the original Airwave crew. From 2007 we have had Proutie's winch here and it is working beautifully. So now, for the first time since the eighties, we are towing beginners and qualified pilots again. We have two registered sites with a ceiling of 2000 feet!!! Thank you Richard! Thank you CAA! Our paramotor school will be able to use the winch to accustom pilots to the sensation of powered lift off and circuits, before they go up under their own prop power. The idea is to reduce the workload of the pilots, progressing one thing at a time and enhancing safety. Francis, John, Mick, Sam, Evan and Butterfly Dave are having fun in the sun in these pics. Careful! Stay on track Good tow Sam, line runner John on tow Operating View from the rig The tow rig Steady on Evan King Koch Reeling in the green line Looking good The Brief Launching Overhead Off the Deck Up and Away Skied Out Specked Out! Winch towing tandem paragliders is a terriffic way to get complete beginners in the air for the first time. It is more of an adrenaline rush than the cliff soaring we have been specialising in for the last few years. We see it as a great asset to our established free flight centre of excellence. Tow launch paragliding, using a Koch static winch with a very smooth auto transmission and low residual drag, is opening up a new chapter for Butterfly Paragliding. There are significantly more flying days, and we were already blessed with a benign microclimate and plenty of different hill sites! The preliminary CAA licence is up to 2000 ft over Atherfield, near our base at Butterfly Paragliding, The Terrace, Chale, IW. Training flights and tows from shorter fields have a lower ceiling of 60 metres. BHPA tow endorsements, tow training courses, EP, CP and Pilot, winch operator, launch marshal and so on, it's a lot more organised and sociable than hill flying. It's great fun, do please come along and try it.