Managing club: Southern Hang Gliding Club · Access: membership
Site briefing
Planning information for Newhaven Cliffs
Take-off
Paragliders — the two most-used launches are in front of and slightly east of the coastguard tower (SE winds), and on the plateau about 200 m further west (S and SSW winds); there are many other places to launch. Hang gliders — the main take-off is a small clearing at the cliff edge 50 m west of the western PG launch (HGs can hit rotor using the PG launches, and the old launch at the western PG launch has been reprofiled by land slippage and is no longer safe for HG). If using the eastern PG launch in SSE winds, HGs should only cliff-launch — do not launch from further back or you will hit rotor. A nose-man is recommended for all launches, tethered to a suitable ground anchor.
Rigging — HGs rig at the HG take-off (beware rotor causing wind to flow towards the cliff edge). PGs rig well back or to the side of the launches and mushroom rigged kit to the side, leaving enough space for top landings.
Landing
Top landing — hang gliders should not generally attempt to top-land; the area (the PG western launch) is small, the overshoot is over very rough ground, and going too far back or too low on overshoot risks serious rotor. Paragliders usually top-land at the back of the main rigging area — be careful not to misjudge the approach and end up in the deep brambles; you can land close to the cliff edge, but be very careful not to fall off or be pulled off by rotor.
Bottom landing — land on the beach near the car park and well back from the sea; hang gliders in particular can float on and into the sea if the approach is too far forward. Do not land in the harbour — there is now no way out! In high summer the bottom-landing area can be too crowded with beachgoers to land safely.
Access and parking
Normally use the Fort car park (up the hill by the Coastguard station — nearest the take-off), or alternatively use the beach car park (by the bottom landing) if that is full. Beware of thieves in these areas; it is unwise to leave valuables in your vehicle. Check the car park closing times, which are different in summer and winter. The fort car park has a height barrier which is sometimes opened during the daytime. Don't get locked in!
Before you fly
Conditions & airspace — Newhaven Cliffs
Live wind for this site. Guidance only — always make your own assessment on the hill.
Air vs sea
Sea temperature — Newhaven Cliffs
Checking the sea temperature…
Air & modelled sea-surface temperature by
Open-Meteo.com
(CC BY 4.0) — a satellite/model estimate, not a measured reading. Cross-check the real
Seaford wave buoy
(nearest in-situ sensor) before relying on it. Guidance only — always judge conditions on the hill.
Tides
Tides — Newhaven Cliffs
Checking the tide…
Tidal data modelled by
(CC BY 4.0) — guidance only, not an official tide table. For navigation/safety-critical use, consult official UKHO tide tables.
Wind forecast
Wind — Newhaven Cliffs
Consensus (mean) · daytime hours · updated hourly
Forecast model
Consensus (mean)
UK Met Office
ECMWF
Météo-France AROME
ICON (DWD)
GFS (NOAA)
KNMI HARMONIE
GEM (Canada)
Follow the one-way system around Newhaven town centre to the left turn at the police station (South Road) and take this into Fort Road. For the Fort car park, turn right after the sports ground and go up the hill into the car park, then up the track to the take-off by the Coastguard station. For the beach car park, continue straight, then turn right once in the car park and park at the far end.
Local guidance
Hazards and cautions
Most of the site is a vertical cliff. The wave-cut platform ('Black Rock') is deeply eroded chalk covered in algae — near impossible to walk on safely, let alone land on; several pilots have broken limbs trying. Various objects protrude from the cliff — do not snag a wing. In light winds, remember the need to clear the cliff edge in front of take-off — you are launching over a hole in the ground behind a vertical cliff. Do not fly over areas with no bottom landing: if there is insufficient lift to soar you will have very little time to set up a bottom landing, and in marginal winds, if you are at the fort when the lift fails, you may not reach the bottom-landing area.
The Brighton run — consider the state of the tide (tables at tidetimes.org.uk/newhaven-tide-times). Take it seriously: a water landing is usually fatal, landings on the black rock often break bones, and if the lift dies there is very little time to set up, with long stretches of no good landing even at low tide. Because of the high accident rate beyond the permanent beach, pilots flying there must be skilled at rapid set-up for an accurate landing and able to judge conditions — hence the recommended minimum ratings beyond the beach: PG — Pilot, or CP + 10 hours in the previous 12 months; HG — Pilot. The airflow at Brighton Marina is very turbulent — do not fly above or beyond the eastern arm. In high summer the bottom-landing area can be too crowded with beachgoers to land safely.
Airflow: There is rotor behind the cliff for almost its full extent — the land immediately behind the main south-west cliff slopes down away from the cliff, often generating a very large rotor; do not allow yourself to get blown back into it. Rotor can also occur at the base of the cliff, especially in bayed regions. In south-westerlies you will usually meet a big reduction in lift and a head-wind when penetrating along the last part of the south face before going round the corner to the main cliff, and there may be rotor immediately behind the southerly point between the two take-offs. In wind with an easterly component there may be no lift beyond the point, a strong venturi at the point, and no available landing. The airflow at Brighton Marina is very turbulent.
As at Beachy Head, the lift here depends on the air being cooler than the sea rather than on wind strength alone — a warm-air/cool-sea day (common June-July, when the Channel lags the land) can leave the lift shallow and marginal even in a promising wind, cutting short your options on the Brighton run. Check the site's live air-vs-sea temperature reading above before you commit.
Exact launch
Launch GPS
50.78206, 0.05014
Members also see the gate / padlock code (where a site has one), the Safety Officer’s contact, and the downloadable guide (PDF).
Forecasts are planning aids, not safety clearance. Check current observations, official airspace and NOTAM information, local rules and your own experience before every flight.