Where to get Weather Information for Flying in Georgia

Where do we get weather information when flying in Georgia? Over time, we found the following the most useful resources. 

Meteoblue.com, which in my personal estimate is 80% right. Sometimes it misses details by 20%, so wind is not entirely strong enough for soaring, or the wind change happens a few hours earlier than predicted. But on balance it's proven fairly reliable. (Disclosure: my brother works there, so this assessment is not independent -- but conversely I can say I spent quite a few years watching the service, in flying, windsurfing and kiting).

YR.no - Norwegian weather service. Some paragliders use both YR and Meteoblue and believe that if both agree, then this really is the final & best weather forecast.  

Tbilisi Airport Information: ATIS: 132.8 MHz, with hourly updates. Almost always accurate. The highest recorded windspeed at TBS airport that allowed us to still fly in Rustavi was 12 knots, but that was borderline. Above 5 knots per hour from the Southeast is typically promising for the Tbilisi Sea flying site. Occasionally the online service, here, lags. 

Always watch out for lenticular clouds, as a sudden increase in windspeed (once more than doubling in 45 minutes) can be a bit unwelcome when in the air. 

Any other suggestions? Let us know. 

Flying high in Tianeti

Up to now, the flying site in Tianeti primarily worked for soaring. The peak draws the thermals from the entire region below, making it a reliable flying site in almost all conditions when the wind is from the South, or Southwest.

However, there have been a number of  longer flights from this location, typically heading out East.  Roland flew 15+ km, a good way towards Akhmeta, on our very first flight there in 2007, landing in a small clearing. Conditions that day turned rough, with the wind coming in from Southwest (unusual) with average speeds above 30 km shortly after Roland had launched.



The highest altitude in Tianeti was about 3800m above ground, which would be about 2000m above the launch site, on April 28, 2008. Above is the footage. We launched as usual, catching the thermal on the right shoulder of the mountain. Curiously, we did not find a single other thermal once we had topped out, when we were flying east, so that it ended up being a glide flight into the neighboring valley, north of Tianeti city.  It seemed that we had found one rare day with one rare gap in the inversion, but we did not stumble on any others.

The key point here is that there is still a long-distance flight waiting to happen from Tianeti, on a good & strong spring day, when you pierce through that inversion, to then fly on and on.

Clouding Up in Rustavi | GoPro

Catching up with processing some of the old recordings. Here is one of a good Rustavi flying day that was bright and sunny, and within 35 minutes the clouds had closed in, the wind got stronger, and it was high time to land. You see the difference from cut to cut.



Long video (and I forgot to switch off the camera at the end, so there is a glimpse of me reflecting on weather patterns with Nodari & the Boss) --  I still love the panoramic perspective of the GoPro in these wide-open spaces.

 More to follow.

Flying in Rustavi, July 2011

You have seen it before, but this video by Levan Iasashvili (in the air with Alex Iskandarov) gives you an even better idea of the gorgeous time one has in Rustavi when the wind is right.

Great video, guys!

Paramotoring over Sighnaghi

Nodar and Rostom flying over Sighnaghi.

For the (pretty amazing) video, click here.

Tsalka Kiting | Plateau

We went to the kiting site in Tsalka once more, about 90 min. west of Tbilisi. The ice on the lake was excellent, but we also found kiting on the plateau just before Tsalka to be awesome. The main bowl is quite flat, but there are some variations that make it interesting, including a chance to go uphill a little further east. Lots of space to race back and forth. The tips of the arrow in the image above are more than 2 km apart.

A close-up shows how well the mountains even funnel the wind.


You may see the light patch running through the fields like a stripe, from top to bottom. That is the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipeline, and the security guards at one of the stations will likely be a bit curious about what you do.

We have now also made out a good restaurant, right in the center of Tsalka, on the right as you drive west, just off the main square. It's called Pontia, and while it is simple the people are very friendly. They now already have seen the first guests come in with ski boots, so likely will not be surprised.


Film to follow.

Tsalka Kiting | Wind, Sideways

So we like wind, and if there's too much of it, we go windsurfing, and if it's a good winter, there is Plan C: ice-kiting.

It only takes about 90 min. to get out to Tsalka, over the great new road (short plug for American development assistance). The ice is thick, although you may want to watch it since it is a reservoir and the lowering of water levels does create some gaps. Not all of those freeze over quickly. Also, there are some fishing holes that are not marked. In the video, you see me looking at one of them. You wouldn't want to sink your skis into one of those. Next time, I will be wearing a life vest.

(My hands were cold, so I had not yet hooked into the harness.)

Preferable kites size would be between 1.5 and 3 sqm, with one or two larger ones in reserve. Average wind speeds were between 30 and 40 km/h, although earlier in the day they reached 60 km/h, at which point the Ozone safety chart for the 3 sqm Flow Kite suggested in firm wording that even Expert Kiters watch instructional DVDs, rather than trying their luck with the winds. Sharpening edges may also be a good idea, given the sheer ice. And you want to take an ice axe, so that you can secure the kite when it is down, and potentially claw your way out of a hole. (Definitely: helmet. On my first kiting day in the season, I was taking it easy, and my GPS still read out speeds of more than 46 km/h. Good idea: radios. So we can use pretty much all our toys. Yay!)


This is a happily exhausted me, after three hours on the ice. Haven't yet checked out the Tsalka restaurants, so as to support local people a bit, but that's next on the list.