Aerial leisure
Within reach of the sky
In the Hautes-Alpes, the wind is more than just a decorative element. It’s a partner, a driving force, sometimes an adversary. The Hautes-Alpes sky is the playground of men and women who dream of elevation, those who want to push back gravity as they search for a ridgeline. Whether plunging to earth from an altitude of 4,000 metres or caressing the ascent of a mountain pass, flying here is more than a leisure activity: it’s an experience that awakens every fibre of the body.
Tallard
capital of adrenalin
Tallard is a world stage where skydiving is lived like a religion, and every jump feels like an Olympic final. Teams train, novices take the plunge, all sharing the same adrenalin rush when the door opens and the valley stretches out, immense, beneath their feet. The deep blue skies of the Haute-Alpes offer exceptional aerological conditions and become the arena where the unforgettable is played out. On the ground, Tallard stands out as a center of aeronautical excellence. Numerous companies choose to locate here to contribute to the development of the industry. The airfield is also home to the Polyaero training center for aeronautical professions.
Free flight,
when the mountain becomes a springboard
Paragliding and hang-gliding have their own cathedrals on the mountains of Chabre and Saint-André-les-Alpes. This is the realm of ascents, of sails that unfurl like giant wings, of silences that settle as you leave the ground. To fly free in the Hautes-Alpes is to enter a dimension where the body fades away and only the pure sensation remains: that of floating, carried by the mountain.
Aerodromes,
open doors to infinity
Beyond Tallard, in La Bâtie-Montsaléon, Saint-Crépin or Le Chevalet, we’re not just talking about aviation, but long-distance adventures. Gliders, small planes, introductory flights: these airfields are the backstage of a discreet and passionate art. Every takeoff tells a story of men and machines, every landing a smile broadened by freedom.
Ever freer
Aerial highlights
Laragne
Ozone Chabre Open
Every summer, the small village of Laragne-Montéglin becomes the place to be for paragliders from all over the world. TheOzone Chabre Open, a friendly competition held on the slopes of Mont Chabre, brings together beginners and experienced pilots alike to share the same passion: flying together, progressing, and sharing great moments in the air and on the ground.
And there’s no podium pressure: the rounds are designed for learning, training and gaining confidence in competition conditions, always in a relaxed atmosphere.
Tallard
Airshow
The Gap-Tallard airshow is the biennial event that makes you look up at the skies over the Hautes-Alpes. In this European temple of light aviation and parachuting, aerobatics draw arabesques in the azure, patrols cross paths within a few meters of each other, and engines roar like a Hollywood soundtrack.
With spectacular demonstrations, first flights and stands for the curious of all ages, the event promises an exhilarating mix of adrenalin and mechanical poetry. All against a backdrop of Alpine panoramas that would make any pilot green with envy.
A word of advice: keep your sunglasses on… and your eyes wide open.
For him, paragliding is not a sport, but a language. Jean-Baptiste Chandelier literally dances with the void, gliding on currents like others on a stage. An extraordinary pilot and an aesthete of trajectory, he has transformed the sail into a paintbrush and the sky into a canvas. His videos, in which he brushes against walls, cliffs and waves, say it all: surgical precision, visual poetry, and that rare blend of grace and daring that commands respect.
Practical notebook
- Prestataires
- Météorologie
