Primarily for general aviation discussion, but other aviation topics are also welcome.
By andytk58
#1361800
Afternoon,

If I was hypothetically (in case my wife is reading this...) to take up skydiving, does anyone here have any experience.

Main questions being, I would want to do the accelerated freefall course, where would be better, here (UK) the States or somewhere in Europe.

I should point out that as I'm in Scotland and getting to Strathallen is a total pain in the **** (unless I fly it every day, which weather permitting is easily feasible), the weather aspect puts me off. I attempted to learn there many years ago (must've been 1999), back when it was static line jumps first and due to crappy weather, never got beyond the first jump, despite spending a fortune in fuel driving there and back each weekend.

Alternatively, I like the idea of learning in Florida, does the economy of scale and cheaper fuel cost help against the trip costs (like obtaining a PPL) or does it not work like that in the skydiving world?

Ideas on a postcard. (and is it legal to jump out your own aircraft once qualified....[wonders:whistle:../])

Andy
By GAFlyer4Fun
#1361814
If your wife is reading the forum, I would suggest skydiving in a wind tunnel. :wink:

I have not tried it myself (after breaking my back motorcycling I was advised no skydiving, ... ), but I have seen my local Airkix instructors do amazing things in a wind tunnel.
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By fattony
#1361830
I did the AFF in Perth (Australia, not Scotland) so I can't really contribute much other than to say the first two jumps were genuinely the most terrifying thing I've ever done. I loved it! :)
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By Flyingfemme
#1361843
The cost of an AFF course is not really enough to allow the savings of a US location to cover the travel and subsistence (if that makes sense). You could break it into two, or three, chunks and stay saturday nights.....or some DZs operate 3 day weekends - so two chunks would be enough if the weather was consistent.
Totally recommend the experience, although you may want to try a tandem before your first AFF - I didn't :lol:
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By Red Nose
#1361887
I think doing a course is exciting but presumably you want to stay current later. With no nearby airfield it could be difficult for you.
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By Flintstone
FLYER Club Member  FLYER Club Member
#1361893
andytk58 wrote:... accelerated freefall course,



Aren't they all? :D
By letpmar
FLYER Club Member  FLYER Club Member
#1361920
There are a lot if variables to talk through and in the long run cost wise it all evens itself out cost wise. If you want to skydive as a sport you probably need to jump somewhere on a regular basis. Many people just do the AFF course as an adventure holiday. Scotty Milne at activeskydiving.co.uk will look after you and he lives in Scotland and does a very good job. Other instructors are available.
I am not selling anything but after 4000 jumps have a little bit of knowledge.
PM me if you want a chat, as was said already a tandem jump first to see if you really want to commit to the full course is not a bad start.

Pete
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By skydriller
FLYER Club Member  FLYER Club Member
#1361967
Not that Im likely to want to jump out of a perfectly serviceable aeroplane... but paragliding, ie jumping off of a cliff with a parachute did interest me a while back, and I was advised to try it tandem first - Sorry, but no. I liked the sensation of flight and would love to do more paragliding, but going tanden first was a big mistake as it really detracted from the experience for me having someone else, literally, pulling the strings.
From that experience, a tandem parachute jump holds no interest for me at all, and if I was to try it I'd want to go alone.

Regards, SD..
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By Flyingfemme
#1361972
skydriller wrote:going tanden first was a big mistake as it really detracted from the experience for me having someone else, literally, pulling the strings.
From that experience, a tandem parachute jump holds no interest for me at all, and if I was to try it I'd want to go alone.

The sensory overload on your first freefall is unbelievable..........having somebody talk you through it is advisable. After all the training I still missed some rather important clues and made some elementary mistakes. I wasn't too worried but there were almost a couple of heart attacks on the ground :D
A tandem jump afterwards allowed me to think it through much better before I went solo again......
By Maxthelion
#1362038
Can anybody answer the OP's question regarding jumping out of your own aeroplane for fun? We will take it as a given that there will still be someone left to land it.
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By matthew_w100
#1362039
We did it out of a flexwing microlight once...

Obviously by "we" I mean I was there when my Para mate (and FI) took up a marine PJI at Dunkeswell, and permitted him to leap out. So "we" only by looking; I'm not stupid enough to get involved.
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By fattony
#1362059
Maxthelion wrote:Can anybody answer the OP's question regarding jumping out of your own aeroplane for fun? We will take it as a given that there will still be someone left to land it.


Section 130 of the ANO. There's more to it than this but essentially "a person must not drop, be dropped or be permitted to drop to the surface or jump from an aircraft flying over the United Kingdom except under and in accordance with the terms of either a police air operator’s certificate or a parachuting permission granted by the CAA under this article".

The answer is yes, with permission.
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By RisePilot
#1362089
I’ve jumped at many locations in both Europe and the US. The best places for AFF training in either Europe or Florida are as follows:

Skydive Empuriabrava (Spain)
http://www.skydiveempuriabrava.com

Skydive City (Zephyrhills, FLA)
http://www.skydivecity.com

Yes, you can train in the UK, but it will be faster/easier/cheaper/better weather and far more enjoyable at the locations above. You can get BPA training/licenses abroad quite easily. There are some good drop zones in the UK, but nothing to compare to the two above.

Regarding where to jump, I know many UK skydivers who have more foreign jumps in their logbook than UK jumps (myself included); I’ve also met many active British skydivers who live in the UK, but have actually never jumped in the UK.

Following is a starter magazine for some general info: http://www.skydivethemag.com/starter/
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By Bob Bevan
FLYER Club Member  FLYER Club Member
#1362105
andytk58 wrote:If I was hypothetically (in case my wife is reading this...) to take up skydiving, does anyone here have any experience.


Andy,

My business partner, Jan Houlberg, was part of the Danish national sky diving team for a number of years so I am sure he would be happy to have a chat. If you think that we be of use PM me you contact details and I will put him in touch. One warning is that he is now bald but I do not know if that was a consequence of the parachuting!

Cheers

Bob