Paragliding in the northeast of Brazil. Photo: Joanna Di Grigoli
Fly Better,  Weather

Weather: Forecasting for a new destination

How do you make a good flying forecast for a place you've never been?

8 December, 2025, by Honza Rejmanek | Photo: Joanna Di Grigoli

When planning a vacation to a new destination it’s important to research the weather. For an enjoyable family vacation it’s enough to know not to go in the rainy season. But for pilots of soaring aircraft, the ratio of sunny to rainy days is just the start.

As free-flight pilots we are especially concerned about the climatology of the wind both aloft and at the surface. In turn this can help us determine how many days might be flyable. 

Climatology of winds aloft can be obtained by looking at historical datasets, but it’s equally important to have a crude global...

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