Hang gliding is an air activity in which a pilot flies an unpowered, light, foot-launchable aircraft called a hang glider. Hang gliding is mainly a recreational air sport, though it has also been used in commerce and for military applications.

Most modern hang gliders are made of an aluminum- or composite-framed fabric wing; however vintage hang gliders are still built with a combination of wood, bamboo, and metal. The most common method of control is by shifting the pilot's mass fore and aft or left or right but other devices, including modern aircraft flight control systems, may be used.

The pilot is hung beneath a lifting wing, most commonly in a harness hanging from the airframe by flexible hang lines. The Fédération Aéronautique Internationale and national airspace governing organizations control some aspects of hang gliding.

Although hang gliding started out centuries ago as gliding down small hills on low performance hang gliders, modern hang glider technology gives pilots the ability to soar for hours, gain thousands of feet of altitude in thermal updrafts, perform aerobatics, and fly cross country over large distances.