Contrail Cup: planes, stages and racing tips
Updated 16 October 2026
Contrail Cup is three laps through gates in the sky, and races are won on clean lines rather than raw speed. This guide covers the habits that make a fast pilot, the nine planes and what each is for, and the hazards waiting on every stage.
The basics that win races
- Fly every gate in order. Miss one and the game tells you to turn back, which costs far more than slowing down for it would have.
- Aim for the middle. Passing through the centre of a gate scores a Perfect, and every Perfect tops up your boost. A lap of Perfects is a lap with boost to spare.
- Nail the start. Press boost the instant the countdown hits go for a Perfect Start and a free shot of boost off the line.
- Spend boost on straights and dives. Boosting into a corner just makes you run wide. Dive with the boost on and you can pass 600 km/h.
- Brake before the hairpins. A touch of air brake (Left Shift) before a tight gate is faster than a long, wide arc past it.
- Follow the dots. The racing line guide (on by default, in Settings) leads you to the next gate while you learn a stage.
- Lost? X puts you back at the last checkpoint.
Controls
W and S push the nose down and pull it up, A and D roll, and Q and E work the rudder for small corrections. R and F set the throttle, Space boosts and B looks back. You can also click the game to fly with the mouse: move it to roll and pitch, left button to boost, right to brake and the wheel for throttle. If up-means-nose-down feels wrong to you, swap it in Settings. A gamepad works, and phones get a touch stick.
The nine planes
Planes are not simply faster or slower versions of each other; each one handles differently. Credits from racing buy them as you level up.
- Swift (from the start): a balanced prop racer that does everything well. The one to learn on.
- Kestrel (from the start): a biplane that turns on a coin and snaps back to level, but is slow at the top end. Great on twisty stages.
- Lancer (level 3): a needle-nosed jet with huge straight-line speed. Plan your corners early.
- Bulwark (level 5): a heavy twin that is slow to wind up but very stable, and it shrugs off scrapes.
- Nova (level 7): ordinary until its meter fills, then the hardest-hitting boost in the hangar, and it refills fastest.
- Mantis (level 9): forward-swept wings and the sharpest turn-in there is, but it slides if you rush it.
- Zephyr (level 12): a glider-like pusher that is weak off the line but keeps its speed in a dive.
- Phantom (level 15): a flat delta with the highest top speed in the Cup, a short boost and a wide turning circle.
- Syphon X: the studio's own prototype, fast and sharp but barely stable. It cannot be bought: reach level 25 or win gold on every stage.
The paint shop changes everything from the main colour and decals to the trail your wingtips leave and the burst when you boost. It is all cosmetic.
The six stages
Cloudreach
A gentle circuit over a sea of cloud and floating islands. Updrafts give free lift and boost; watch for floating rocks near the racing line, and stay out of the cloud sea, which slows you down.
Red Mesa Run
A canyon through a sunset plateau. The slot-canyon shortcut is faster if you can fly it cleanly. Dust devils push you around, and the canyon walls punish a late turn.
Tempest Bay
A gale over open sea. Storm cells cause turbulence, lightning can strike you, and the sea arch sits barely above the waves. Skimming the water slows you, so fly low but not that low.
Magma Rift
A lava river and a volcano that spits fire. Fire geysers erupt on a timer and lava bombs fall from the crater; touching the lava burns and bounces you. The heat over the lava gives lift and boost, though, for pilots brave enough to use it.
Frostfang Pass
A glacier under the northern lights. Climb over the ridge, or dive through the glacier crevasse shortcut. Blizzards bring crosswinds and hide the view, and ice spires stand on the frozen lake.
Skyline Loop
The hardest circuit in the Cup: tower canyons, a skybridge, a tunnel through a megastructure, laser gates you have to time, and hover traffic crossing your line.
Difficulty, medals and the Cup Score
Races against the computer come in four difficulties. On Rookie, Pro and Ace the computer pilots get a little catch-up help when they fall behind; on Legend they get none, and they fly close to perfectly. Harder difficulties pay more XP and credits.
Time Trial puts you alone on a stage against your own ghost, chasing bronze, silver, gold and platinum times. Your Cup Score adds 10,000 for every stage flown at its gold time, and more if you beat it. Post it to the SyphonGames board with three initials from the results screen.
Racing online
Multiplayer finds a public race or opens a private room with a four-character code, for two to eight pilots. If you join while a race is running, you go straight into the next one. There is no chat, only emotes such as a wing waggle, a smoke burst and a thumbs up.
Ready to play?
Contrail Cup runs in your browser, free, with nothing to install. Play Contrail Cup now, or browse the categories for something else.
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