How to Become a Wing Foil Instructor: IWO, VDWS, RYA and BKSA Compared

To become a wing foil instructor you take a 2 to 8 day instructor course with IWO, VDWS, RYA or BKSA, and the timing is good: 279 of the 582 kite instructor posts we listed since January 2024 mention wing foiling. Which course fits depends on where you want to teach and whether you already teach kite.

Why kite schools want wing instructors

Wing has become part of the kite instructor job. Of the 582 kite instructor posts we listed since January 2024, 279 (48%) mention wing foiling. In most of them, wing comes together with kite: 220 posts (38%) mention both.

Of the 140 instructor posts open on 22 October 2026, 53 (38%) mention wing.

For you, that means a wing license matches almost half of the posts we list.

The wing instructor courses compared

Prices are examples, not fixed rates.

Course facts as published in October 2026 by iwointl.com, ikointl.com, vdws.de, rya.org.uk, britishkitesports.org, kiteboardingaus.com.au and the schools named.

IWO is linked to IKO and lists four routes to its instructor license on iwointl.com. If you have no instructor certification yet, you take the Instructor Training Course: online self study first, then 5 days in person. The course price includes one year of professional liability insurance.

The VDWS Wing Instructor Level 1 runs 8 days. For Wing Level 2, VDWS recommends the same 21-day internship as for kite. If you are still choosing a kite system as well, our comparison of IKO vs VDWS covers the two licenses side by side.

The RYA has two courses in the UK. The Wingsurfing Instructor certificate is valid for 5 years. The Wingfoiling Instructor course takes 2 to 4 days.

At one UK school, the BKSA Wing Instructor Training Course takes 4 days. Kiteboarding Australia has its own Winging Instructor course, which covers the BKSA wing foiling teaching scheme. It also asks for a Working With Children Check.

Pick the system the schools in your target region ask for. Read a few posts there before you book.

Already a kite instructor?

Then IWO has a shorter route for you.

IKO instructors with an active membership take IKO Coach Level 1 Wingfoil: an online exam plus a riding video. IKO Coach Level 1 is an online course for Level 1+ instructors at $150, and it covers up to 5 disciplines, wing foil among them. If you already hold the wingfoil coach qualification, you apply to IWO without a course. Instructors from other organizations take an online Instructor Equivalency Course.

If you do not have a kite license yet, it is worth getting both. Our guide on how to become a kitesurf instructor walks through the kite side.

How well do you need to ride?

These are the riding levels the courses ask for:

• IWO: IWO Level 3M or equivalent.
• VDWS: safe foiling up to 6 Beaufort, and you pass the exam in 10 to 25 knots.
• RYA Wingsurfing Instructor: the personal level Improve Your Wingsurfing.
• RYA Wingfoiling Instructor: Sustained Flights.
• IKO Coach Level 1 Wingfoil: a riding video.

An instructor course teaches you how to teach. It does not make you a confident foiler. Get your own riding solid in gusty and light wind before you book.

What wing instructors earn

We have no separate wing pay in our data. Schools that state pay do it in combined kite and wing posts.

Two examples: H2O Extreme in Kenya pays €20 to €25 per teaching hour for a wing and kite instructor (October 2026). Accrokite on Koh Phangan pays 600 to 800 THB (€16 to €21) per hour for kite and wing (June 2026).

So our data cannot show a wing premium. What it does show is access: wing is named in 279 of the 582 posts. Rates by country are in our breakdown of kitesurf instructor salary from employer posts.

Where to find wing instructor work

Demand for wing differs a lot by country. Among instructor posts since January 2024, wing is mentioned in:

• Kenya: 6 of 8 posts (75%)
• Australia: 10 of 14 (71%)
• Italy: 59 of 96 (61%)
• Greece: 40 of 72 (56%)
• USA: 9 of 16 (56%)
• Germany: 58 of 124 (47%)
• Spain: 23 of 63 (37%)

Kenya, Australia and the USA have high shares but few posts. Of the countries above, Italy and Germany have the most wing posts in absolute terms, at 59 and 58.

Greece stands out too, and our page of kitesurf jobs in Greece shows the schools hiring there right now.

The open instructor posts that name wing in the title are on our page of watersports instructor jobs, next to windsurf and sailing roles. Apply with both licenses listed at the top of your CV.

How we counted

kitesurfOK collects kite and watersports jobs from school career pages, resort operators and job boards such as IKO. The numbers in this article come from the 582 kitesurf instructor posts we listed between 1 January 2024 and 22 October 2026, 140 of which were still open on 22 October 2026. A post counts as mentioning wing foiling when its text names wing, wingfoil or wingsurf. Course facts and prices are taken from the organizations and schools named above as published in October 2026.