About Fly Sun Valley

Fly Sun Valley is the exclusive paragliding operation of the Sun Valley Resort, conducting flights in cooperation with the Sun Valley Company and a special commercial permit issued by the US Forest Service. Fly Sun Valley is owned and operated by Chuck Smith. He began flying paragliders in 1987 in Switzerland, initially utilizing "parapentes" as a descent tool for mountaineering activities in the Alps and later for climbs in the Andes and Himalayas. He was involved in the formation of the American Paragliding Association, (APA) the original governing body of paragliding prior to its merger with the USHPA. Chuck is a former factory test pilot for UP International and has worked in essentially every aspect of the sport of paragliding. Additionally, he is a former US national champion and national team member, former co-owner of Aspen Paragliding, holds numerous flying awards, is an USHPA Advanced Instructor, USHPA Tandem Administrator and has personally flown over 4000 safe tandem flights.

Fly Sun Valley Blog

Ghana PG Festival Blog

Moto Ventures Blog

Team Pilots/Instructors
Our complete staff of expert pilots is fully certified by the USHPA and includes some of the best pilots in the industry. Our tandem instructors include Honza Rejmanek, holder of several Idaho distance records, nationally recognized pilot, Abe Laguna, top ranked competition pilot JM, "hotshot" firefighter & smokejumper, Peter Hammett, Utah climbing guide and videographer, Dave Hanning, Telluride ski patrolman and mountain pilot, Ryan Taylor and Colorado pilot and computer god, Tim Meehan.

Recent Activity

Chuck was again invited to participate in the 4th Annual Ghana Paragliding Festival in March of 2008. This festival is hosted by the Ghanaian Ministry of Tourism. We were elated to be part of this event and once again return to Ghana. The third visit to this wonderful country was as fun as the first visit in April 2006. It was a great adventure to share flight with the Ghanaians while gliding over the lush jungles of West Africa. The warm and hospitable people of Ghana are among the friendliest people in the world. Click here to see images we took during our visits to Ghana. Additional info and images can also be seen on the festival's official website. Many thanks to Walter Neser for all his help and organizing the event. Also thanks to the Ghanaian Ministry of Tourism for thier warm hospitality.

Fly Sun Valley is delighted to announce that we are now formally offering flights to people with disabilities in cooperation with Sun Valley Adaptive Sports. With support of SVAS, we have been working to develop equipment that makes it easier and safer to fly with passengers that are physically disabled. Fly Sun Valley is also very proud to be part of the "Higher Ground" program. This program serves recently injured American veterans returning from the Iraqi and Afghan wars. The purpose of "Higher Ground" is to make a healthy, positive, and lifelong impact on the rehabilitation of veterans. Look for the new, white, tandem glider with the SVAS logo in the skies over Sun Valley!

In November of 2003, in an expedition sponsored by Marmot, Chuck, along with six other mountaineers voyaged to the Khumbu region of Nepal, the home of Mt. Everest. The purpose of this trip was to launch themselves off the peaks of this notorious mountain range, to soar the skies around the roof of the world and to share the spirit of flight with the illustrious Sherpa people of the region. Pictures from this expedition are posted in the gallery section of this website. Go to the website, Over Khumbu to learn more. Also go to Apple.com for recent information on the film made about this expedition. The film, "Between Earth and Sky", documenting the expedition, is currently available on DVD. (Contact us or Rattle Can Films for availability). The film premiered at the Telluride Mountain Film Festival in May, 2004. "Between Earth and Sky" has become an international favorite as an Official Selection in over a dozen film festivals in five countries including the Maui Film Festival and Jackson Hole Film Festival, winning Best Adventure Film at the 2005 Boulder Adventure Film Festival and Best Cultural Documentary at the 2004 St. Hilaire Film Festival in St. Hilaire, France.