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Solo Skydiving/Continuing Training

After you have made two tandem skydives, you are able to solo freefall skydive. The following section details the training progression at Skydive Zion which begins with two tandems and finishes with six solo freefall training skydives. There is more information here than on other websites, but if you are confused just email us your questions.

Your first skydive/parachute jump is a memorable and spectacular introduction to this adventure sport. Everyone experiences a sensory rush/overload when they make their first jump, and it takes training and experience to adjust to this environment. On subsequent skydives we teach you to take control of this experience and do the things that you want to do in the sky!

CONTINUING TRAINING -

Tandem Level 2 - (Second Jump)

Ground School
----course outline
----course test

Six Solo Freefall Skydives (AFF)

Safety

Currency Requirements

Prices for All This!

TANDEM TRAINING PROGRESSION

To continue your skydiving training we will have you make a second tandem (level two) skydive before going onto your solo freefall training skydives.

Many people have made their first tandem skydive elsewhere, and yes it can be applied at Skydive Zion so that you may go right onto a Level Two Tandem (as long as your first tandem has been made within the previous two years). The most important things for you to have learned on your first tandem is 1) how to voluntarily get out of an airplane, 2) learn how to arch your body, 3) and some parachute flight basics. These can be accomplished even when you have not received much training. But in order to move onto your first solo skydive, you must have accomplished the lessons involved on a Level Two Tandem.

Your level 2 tandem is more of a training skydive than your first tandem jump. On the first skydive most people ride up in the airplane wondering if the parachute will work, if they can breathe, if they can arch correctly, etc. On the level two tandem you will be more concerned about how you will do when performing your freefall maneuvers:

1. Three practice ripcord pulls
2. Diving forward for 5 to 10 seconds
3. Making a 90 degree left turn
4. Wave off and pulling the ripcord without a signal between 4000 and 6000 feet above the ground
5. Once the parachute has opened there are control checks, flight maneuvers and landing pattern procedures taught during the flight under canopy.

Once you have completed the lessons of the tandem level two skydive, you can bypass the first skydive of the solo freefall training program (AFF level one). Of course you still need to go through the five hours of classroom instruction, but people who have completed two tandem skydives are easier to train and the classroom portion goes more efficiently.

Although the first skydive is the most memorable, many people find the level two tandem to be more enjoyable because you are better prepared to take control of the freefall after having already made a tandem skydive. In addition during the level two tandem the student feels more in-control of the dive, and thats because they do control the dive. Also the maneuvers of the level two tandem are very similar to the maneuvers of the first solo skydive, which is AFF level two.

ACCELERATED FREEFALL TRAINING

Accelerated Freefall (AFF) training is the most advanced and intensive method of learning that is available in the sport of skydiving. During this program people learn to skydive the same way that experienced/licensed skydivers experience their sport - with long freefalls and pulling their ripcord to deploy their modern rectangular parachute, and flying back to the airport for a soft and accurate landing.

The freefall isn't accelerated, but the learning certainly is. Instead of going through 20 to 25 low altitude jumps from the traditional static line/ short freefall program, people can now complete their training requirement on only eight skydives!(two tandems and six solos) (see prices below)

All of these solo training skydives are started at 11,000 feet above the ground (14000 feet above sea level). Each student is making a solo skydive, although there is an instructor flying near them during the freefall. The instructors are there to give handsignals to help teach you how to fly, to learn about the sport, and to remind you to open the parachute - considered part of the successful completion of a skydive!

The AFF program progresses through a series of skydives as the students are taught how to control their movements in every direction, and to skydive safely.

An intensive five hour classroom session covers the details of learning to skydive, from the parachuting instruction through the freefall instruction. People are taught how to exit the airplane, to take control with an arched body position, to safely deploy the parachute, to check and correct the parachute if there are any problems, and to fly the parachute back to the airport for a soft landing. This classroom session is the biggest time commitment in the training program. After you have finished the classroom it should only take about thirty minutes to prepare for each subsequent AFF skydive. Click here for a course outline .

AFF Level Two

AFF Level Two teaches you how to refine your arched body control position and to dive forward across the sky, to do left and right turns, and again to deploy the parachute at a safe altitude. Once the parachute is open, there is radio assistance from the ground, but unless you are coming from the tandem program this is when we start to give you more responsibility in flying the parachute including the flare on landing!

A person must have successfully completed a Tandem Level Two skydive, before going on to an AFF Level Two skydive.
AFF Level 2 Skydive Video

AFF Level Three

AFF Level Three teaches you how to fly neutral without assistance from an instructor. On Level Two skydives the instructor has at least one grip on the student throughout the entire freefall. On AFF Level Three you perform the basic equipment and altitude checks, and if you are flying well the instructors will release you for the remainder of the freefall while you demonstrate the ability to fly in place and that you can safely deploy the parachute.

AFF Level Three is a common skydive for people who used to skydive, but have been out of the sport for several years and want to get current again.
AFF Level 3 Skydive Video

AFF Level Four

AFF Level Four teaches you how to do controlled 90 degree turns and how to fly and `dock' with other people in the sky. The instructor has a grip on your harness as you exit the airplane, but releases you shortly thereafter to start and stop turns, and practice flying to the instructor. Level Four is also the recurrency skydive for students who have let more than 30 days go by between skydives. Even students who have graduated the AFF program but have let more than a month go by are expected to perform this skydive again before they are let loose with the rest of the skydiving community.
AFF Level 4 Skydive Video

AFF Level Five

AFF Level Five teaches you how to do the more radical 360 degree turns and continuing to work on catching the instructor in freefall. Level Five also introduces you to tracking, which is a method of diving away from other skydivers at the end of the skydive to open the parachute safely. Level Five is the last skydive in the program where the instructor has a grip on the student as they exit the airplane.
AFF Level 5 Skydive Video

AFF Level Six

AFF Level Six is the first of the two radical or aggressive types of skydives. With the experience gained from the previous skydives, the student does a solo- unassisted exit from the airplane, performs two or three backloops, and then flies a full speed track across the sky in a straight line. At this point in the program the student still has radio communication from the ground, but radio assistance is minimal as they fly their own landing patterns and landings.
AFF Level 6 Skydive Video

AFF Level Seven

AFF Level Seven is the certification skydive, and is the busiest skydive for the student. After diving right out of the door of the airplane, the student then flies through a front loop, a 360 degree left turn, a backloop and a 360 degree right turn. At the end of the freefall the student demonstrates a straight line track and safe deployment of the parachute. In essence, the student demonstrates that they can fly neutral (hover), leave that neutral position to fly in every direction; forwards, backwards, left, right, backloop and frontloop, and that the parachute can be safely deployed at the correct altitudes. Once you have learned and demonstrated this control, then you have graduated!
AFF Level 7 Skydive Video

And get ready for some of the greatest experiences of your life!

Welcome to Skydiving!

COSTS OF CONTINUED TRAINING

Level 2 Tandem - $205
Classroom - $75
AFF Level 2 - $205
AFF Level 3 - $205
AFF Level 4 - $205
AFF Level 5 - $205
AFF Level 6 - $205
AFF Level 7 - $205

TOTAL COSTS $1470 (after the first tandem)

Be Aware Of Currency Requirements !!!

Skydiving has evolved into a very safe activity as long as skydivers observe and obey the basic safety regulations of the sport. One of these requirements is to remain current in the sport, or go through review and retraining to insure your continued participation in the sport.

At Skydive Zion we have the following currency requirements:

• Tandem One - Up to two years to be able to go on to tandem two, otherwise repeat tandem one
• Tandem Two - Up to one year to be able to go directly to AFF freefall training, otherwise repeat level

AFF Levels - Once having begun the solo training the student has up to the next thirty days to progress onto the next level. After thirty days has gone between jumps the student should go back and redo the last skydive that they successfully passed. If the person has gone more than two months since the last skydive, then there will be some additional review and retraining on the ground; probably about one to two hours. If the person has gone more than six months since the previous skydive, they will need to go through the full days training once again, although at a reduced price.