Aerialis Kites quad-line tutorials

Aerialis Kites has published tutorials by Sven for several years as blog posts with accompanying videos. The material is useful, but it is spread across a “Learn to fly” page, several WordPress categories, and the YouTube channel.

This page only includes resources about quad-line kite flying. Single-line, dual-line, KAP, kite-building, and general flying stories have been left out.

The tutorials are in English, with the complete transcript on each video’s page. The videos are shared with Aerialis Kites’ agreement, and the grouping into five themes is QuadKites.org’s.

• Field-oriented explanations: many lessons begin with a problem encountered during an actual session.
• The pilot stays visible: several videos make it easier to connect hand and body inputs with the kite’s response.
• Topics not often covered elsewhere: low wind, glides, one-handed flying, flat relaunches, and first steps without wind.
• A catalog to browse by need: this works better as a library than as one continuous syllabus.

A reasonable order: the equipment to prepare the kite, then core control to launch, turn and hold a hover, followed by precision, light wind and freestyle. Each card leads to the video’s page, with its complete transcript and a link to the original Aerialis Kites article. For methodical practice, also read the five reps practice method, taken from an Aerialis Kites article.

Before flying, the equipment has to be ready: kite assembled, lines sorted, knots secure, everything packed away without damage.

1. 

   Assembling a quad kite

   Aerialis Kites

   Identify the parts and assemble the frame correctly before the first flight.

2. 

   Sorting out the lines before flight

   Aerialis Kites

   Prepare all four lines without creating unnecessary twists or knots.

3. 

   The larks head knot

   Aerialis Kites

   Learn the knot used to connect flying lines to the bridle and handles.

4. 

   Disassemble and pack the kite

   Aerialis Kites

   Pack the frame and lines after a session without preparing problems for the next one.

5. 

   Making a sleeved line set

   Aerialis Kites

   Measure, cut, and sleeve four flying lines to prepare your own set.

These tutorials build core quad-kite control: launching, turning, holding a hover, understanding the angle of attack, flying straight and positioning your body.

1. 

   Launch and land

   Aerialis Kites

   The first inputs needed to put the kite in the air and bring it down under control.

2. 

   Turning

   Aerialis Kites

   Understand and repeat a first basic turn while keeping the trajectory under control.

3. 

   The hover

   Aerialis Kites

   Stop the kite and keep it still at different points in the wind window.

4. 

   Grab the handles, move your body

   Aerialis Kites

   Hold the handles lightly and use body movement to preserve line tension.

5. 

   The angle of attack

   Aerialis Kites

   Connect handle angle, pressure in the sail, and the kite’s behaviour.

6. 

   More on the angle of attack

   Aerialis Kites

   Refine pressure in the sail before working on straight trajectories.

7. 

   The down turn

   Aerialis Kites

   Complete the basic turns and avoid relying on a single direction of rotation.

8. 

   Improve your hovers

   Aerialis Kites

   Work on orientations and stability through a series of progressive exercises.

9. 

   Straight trajectories

   Aerialis Kites

   Identify the corrections that produce cleaner lines across the wind window.

10. 

    Footwork and body position

    Aerialis Kites

    Move on the ground to follow the wind, maintain tension, and improve precision.

11. 

    Split-screen pilot and kite tutorial

    Aerialis Kites

    Watch the pilot’s movements and their effect on the kite at the same time.

Once hovers and straight trajectories are in place, these tutorials add more precise moves: side slides, a dive with a dead stop, the jump, rotations and one-handed flying.

1. 

   Upright side slide

   Aerialis Kites

   Move the kite horizontally while keeping it upright.

2. 

   Inverted side slide

   Aerialis Kites

   Perform the same sideways translation while the kite is inverted.

3. 

   Power dive and dead stop

   Aerialis Kites

   Move from a powered dive to a sharp stop without losing control.

4. 

   The jump

   Aerialis Kites

   Interrupt a horizontal path with a short vertical rise before continuing.

5. 

   Bicycle rotations

   Aerialis Kites

   Rotate the kite around its centre while limiting unwanted movement.

6. 

   One-handed flying

   Aerialis Kites

   Hold both handles in one hand and discover the first usable controls.

Light wind is one of Aerialis’ strengths: learning to create sail pressure yourself, winning ground back when you run out of space, and relaunching a kite lying flat.

1. 

   The basics of windless flying

   Aerialis Kites

   Launch, climb, fly up and over the pilot, and return with a quad suited to indoor flying.

2. 

   Glide and gain

   Aerialis Kites

   Use a downwind glide to recover ground when sail pressure becomes weak.

3. 

   How to dead launch your quad kite

   Aerialis Kites

   Recover a kite lying flat with its leading edge pointing downwind.

4. 

   Two and a Half Glides

   Aerialis Kites

   Compare several glides for flying and regaining ground in very low wind.

Three freestyle moves presented by Aerialis Kites.

1. 

   Catch and throw

   Aerialis Kites

   Bring the kite back to your hand and throw it into flight in light wind on short lines.

2. 

   Axel

   Aerialis Kites

   Trigger a flat rotation and understand the conditions needed for recovery.

3. 

   Falling leaf

   Aerialis Kites

   Pop the kite out of flight, let it fall like a leaf, then recover it.

Beyond the video tutorials, Sven publishes blog articles with flying tips. Here is a first selection, in English, limited to articles about quad-line kites or flying in general. These are links to read on the Aerialis Kites website: they are not translated yet.

• Flying with Intent: deciding in advance what and where you will fly, then flying exactly that, to improve faster than by flying at random. With a video.
• More Flight Exercises to Practice: more exercises with defined paths, such as 90° turns and vertical and horizontal straight lines, with a vented quad kite. With a video.

• Tricking the A-Quad: the idea that a quad kite lends itself to tricks too, with the pancake as an example.
• Flic Flac: one of the few quad-line tricks, tried and filmed. With a video.
• A Quick Run-Down on Body Language!: static or dynamic pilot? Reading the wind and moving around the field to adapt to its fluctuations, with a video comparing the two styles.
• Ground Control – Key to Freestyle Flying: how moving your body on the ground affects your control of the kite, in shifting winds, for advanced tricks or to keep line tension.

• Wind Dumping: in strong wind, too much lift pulls hard on the lines and makes the kite unstable; vents take some of it away.
• Nerd Alert – Light Wind Study: flying in very light wind takes finesse, intuition and timing rather than power. With a video.

• Stick Practice – The Secret Behind Great Kite Team Flying: practising on the ground with sticks before launching, as teams do. With a video.
• Don’t Leave Your Stuff Behind on the Flying Field!: a simple trick for not leaving anything behind on the field.

• Aerialis Kites “Learn to fly” page
• Tutorial category in the blog
• Tutorial playlist on YouTube

• The basics of flying