Skydiving

A parachute will slow down a free-fall by catching the air rushing past you. It's large, bag-like shape greatly contributes to the air resistance working against the gravitational pull, and so slows your fall down a point that it is no longer dangerous.

Paratroopers roll to dissipate the kinetic energy associated with the fall. As the ground is, for all intents and purposes, an immovable object, landing directly on your feet would bring you to an immediate stop, and as the body has no way to naturally counteract the energy which has nowhere to go, severe injury would be likely.

If you live in New Zealand or are a visitor, the answer is yes. You need the written permission on a parent or guardian and must be able to fit into the harness.

This is a unique situation and as far as I know, the age limit for a TANDEM skydive is higher at least 16 and often 18 yrs of age.

You would not be able to do a solo skydive at 11, even in NZ.

It is a common sense issue, few 11 year olds would have the ability to act appropriately in an emmergency and would most likely panic. It would also be difficult to modify a skydive rig to fit the small body of an average 11 year old, though there are probably a few MacDonalds fans out there for whom this would not be a problem.

gravity

The United States Parachute Association reports about 30 fatalities a year, out of an estimated 3 million jumps. Figures from other countries are less reliable due to the lower numbers involved.

You'll get to the drop zone and talk to someone in the office (known to skydivers as manifest), who will get you started on some paperwork. There will be a lengthy waiver that you have to sign before you can jump, which reminds you that skydiving is an extreme sport and is not a terribly safe activity, so the drop zone is not liable if you get hurt or killed during your skydive. While you're looking over this reassuring bit of paperwork, you'll probably notice all the people around you--experienced skydivers and first-time tandem jumpers alike. If you take a minute to really look, you'll likely notice that they all seem to be wearing huge smiles. This will make sense to you in a little while.

After you sign the paperwork and watch a short introductory video, you'll meet your instructor and your videographer, if you opted to get video of your jump (it's expensive, but if this is your first time, you will absolutely kick yourself later if you choose not to get video). Your instructor is your best friend for the next few hours. He will give you a short safety briefing and explain to you what to do during the skydive. It's in your best interest to listen to him--it's his job to save your life, and you have the potential to really mess him up if you don't do what you're told.

After all that is done, it's time to get suited up. You'll wear a specially made harness that straps to your instructor's parachute harness. You'll also wear a pair of goggles to keep the wind out of your eyes, and, depending on the temperature, you may wear a jumpsuit. After your gear has been checked out, you'll head toward the plane. If your nerves haven't kicked in yet, get ready, because they're about to. If you're expecting a fancy first-class seat on an airliner, prepare to be disappointed. Most jump planes are tiny, cramped, and uncomfortable. You'll probably be sitting on the floor, in your instructor's lap, with somebody else sitting in your lap. If you're lucky, you may be in a larger plane with actual seats, or benches. If you're unlucky, you'll be crammed into a tiny Cessna with 4 other people and barely enough room to scratch your nose. Either way, the plane ride is a necessary evil, but it's worth it. You'll see.

After everybody's strapped in, the plane will taxi to the runway. It's normal to be scared at this point. You'll begin your climb to altitude, which can take anywhere from fifteen minutes to a half hour. On the way up, your instructor will go over some more things with you, and will probably joke around to try to loosen you up, if he can tell you're nervous (and let's face it--who wouldn't be? You're about to jump out of an airplane!). If you're jumping in the summer, the jumpmaster will usually open the door for a few minutes on the way to altitude, just to cool everybody off (there's no air conditioning on a jump plane). This is an interesting experience in itself, and can be a bit scary if you're near the door. But don't worry, you won't fall out--at least, not until you're ready to!

So after a long, uncomfortable ride to altitude, you'll feel the plane level off. Someone will yell "Door!", and the door will open. The sound of the wind rushing by at 100mph is deafening, even from inside the plane. Your instructor will get you up and slide you closer to the door. The adrenaline will have your heart racing in a mixture of fear and excitement. The anticipation grows as you move closer to the door, and watch other jumpers exit the plane. By the time you get to the door, you'll be able to see the ground below you. The view from up here is spectacular. You're way too high to see people, or cars, or even houses, and you can clearly see the curvature of the earth. Your instructor will position you in the door, and at this point, it's do or die. No going back now. Your videographer will step outside and hold on from outside the door to get a good view as you get ready to go. Your instructor will give the signal... and then you're flying.

There are no words to describe the feeling of freefall. It's absolute freedom. There is no sensation of falling; it's much more like flying. It's an experience like nothing else in the world. Your senses may feel overloaded; it is really a lot to take in, especially on your first time. But for most people, by the time they exit the plane, the fear is gone. It's replaced by a feeling of ecstasy that the majority of the population will never dream of. You'll fly for about a minute, until it's time to deploy the parachute. At about 5000 feet above the ground, your instructor will pull the ripcord and your parachute will open, slowing you from 120mph to about 15mph in around 5 seconds.

Once your parachute is open, you'll be able to talk to your instructor (the wind is much too loud to talk in freefall). It's also your chance to enjoy the scenery, and really relax and take in the experience. It's very quiet under canopy, especially compared to the deafening wind noise of freefall. Your instructor may let you steer the canopy. After about a five minute canopy ride, you'll come in for your landing. Your instructor will flare the canopy, and you'll either land standing up, or come sliding in on your butt. Once you reach the ground and fully realize what you've just done, you'll understand all those grins on the faces of the other skydivers, and probably have one of your own.

Skydiving has its risks, and can result in injury or death, even if you do everything right. It's rare, but it happens. If you're okay with this, and you still choose to do it, it can be an absolutely life-changing experience. A word of warning, though--this sport is highly addictive, and I think Leonardo da Vinci said it best: "When once you have tasted flight, you will forever walk the earth with your eyes turned skyward, for there you have been, and there you will long to return."

The velocity of a skydiver is largely governed by weightand drag. Obviously both can vary quite a bit. The typical skydiver flying in "belly" or prone position reaches the terminal velocity of about 110mph to 130mph (typically 120mph) after about 1000ft of freefall. This equates to a rate of approximately 1000ft for every 5.5 seconds. Tandems would fall at 150 to 180 mph if it wasn't for a drogue chute that is deployed by the tandem instructor shortly after leaving the aircraft to increase the drag on the tandem pair. This is needed because there is about twice the weight and essentially the same drag because the student is laying directly below the instructor. If you double the weight without increasing the surface area the fall rate will increase by a factor of the square root of 2. So, about 170 mph for an average tandem pair with no drogue. Similarly to the situation with an individual skydiver, tandem freefall rates can vary quite a bit. Many camera fliers wear small wings under their arms to allow them a higher range of adjustability in their fall rates.

Not necessarily. In many countries such as the UK, you can skydive from the age of 16 onwards with parental consent. Once you reach the age of 18, you can self certify.

There is no law in the US regarding the minimum age to skydive, so it would be legal to take a four year old on a tandem skydive. Realistically though, the United States Parachute Association issues the licenses to skydivers, and if a USPA instructor is found to have taken a child on a skydive then he's subject to disciplinary action. Additionally, the fact that we are a litigious society requires all skydiving businesses to operate under a waiver system, where the participant is required to sign a Participation Agreement, essentially forfeiting his right to sue, and waiving all liability. That being the case you must be of Legal Age of Majority in order to enter into that contract, that age is 18 in most states, but 19 in a few. Also, legal precedent has held that a parent or guardian can not waive liability on behalf of a minor.

Both. Diving is a sport in the Olympics, and people can dive in the pool or wherever they want. But it can be a professional sport purely based on the various techniques such as flips and spins while diving into the pool. It is a sport, like many others, that take years and years of practice before perfection.

Drag. It reduced the fall rate to a survivable speed.

Panic?

Terror?

Exhilaration?

No, "FREE-FALL". Although one or more of the first three are likely, as well.

By the way; a skydiver is only in freefall for about a second after the jump. After that, the air resistance of his body begins to slow him down until he reaches "terminal velocity".

[left leg through the knee amputee]

Yes. I recently started. Done 10 jumps so far and happy to continue.

When free falling, you will experience high speed winds pushing against your body and it will feel like you are floating and not falling. You will feel a rush of air past your ears. There is some speculation that in the long term you may have some hearing loss. When the chute opens, you will experience 3-4 g's. This has no bad effect, but if you have back problems it can be a major problem. Another effect is just the pure excitement.

The altitude of which a skydiver jumps from depends on different variables such as the type of plane and also the style of fall. Plus, beginner skydivers are usually falling tandem as most instructors will not allow them to jump alone. The typical altitudes are between 12,500 feet above ground level and 18,000 feet above ground level.

Skydivers do NOT move upwards at all when we open our parachutes. We don't even bounce a little. That is an illusion caused by the camera operator still falling at full speed while the first jumper opens their parachute and slows.

Now, it is possible to move upwards in some limited circumstances. When exiting a fast-moving aircraft while wearing a wingsuit, you can rise above the plane for a (very) short time. Also, once your parachute is open, you can flare your canopy enough to slightly (by a few feet) gain altitude.

There are 2 types of parachute - the round parachute and the more modern wing parachute. The round parachute is a decelerator and works on drag only through the atmosphere. However, with the wing shaped 'square' parachute, they act with an additional force of lift. Another name for this type of parachute is the Ram Air Parachute.

Whilst few of them ever generate enough lift to gain altitude, they do create masses of forward motion which gives them better range to land back on the dropzone. You also get better, safer landings which are easier on the knees! Most dropzones these days only use squares.

I would recommend a tandem jump for your first one which uses this more modern type of parachute.

A parachute is deployed using a smaller drogue pilot chute which drags the main parachute off the container. The container is a combined harness which holds the packed parachute on your back. As the parachute inflates, it will slow you down from 120mph to around 10mph average. The final stage is landing, where the skydiver pulls down on both steering toggles to further slow down the decent rate for a tip-toe soft landing.

Parachutes are interesting aircraft. The major retarding force of classical round parachutes is drag. Weight and drag determine their rate-of-descent. But air spills out of them because they oscillate, too. Since the 1960's parachutes have been designed that acheive lift from their forward motion.

Terminal velocity is not a predetermined speed. Terminal velocity is the condition in which the forces of gravity and drag are equalized, and no further change in speed is possible if these conditions remain the same. However, terminal velocity can vary greatly depending upon altitude, wind resistance of an object, atmospheric conditions, and other factors.

NO, the Accelerated Free Fall program allows the student to jump for the first time with two instructors holding onto their parachute harness. The program begins with a 4-6 hour ground-school course and then a minimum of 7-8 jumps that require the student to progressively demonstrate new skills they have learned on the ground. From the first jump, the student is fully responsible for the proper timely deployment of their parachute, fixing any unlikely malfunctions of the parachute, and safely landing.

Parachutes are not rated by their speed.

A parachute works by increasing the air resistance of a suspended falling body or object. The greater the mass of the object the larger the area of the parachute must be to reduce the speed to an acceptable level.

Thee is not exactly a set height limit unless you are a tandem student. Solo skydiving is not a problem but tandems have height and weight restrictions. By this i mean your body weight and height must be in proportion to each other.IE Someone who is 5 ft 3 and 15 stone, no chance!

These are;

Canton Air Sports

SkyDive Columbus

Cleveland Parachute Center

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Skydive Rick's

Aerohio Skydiving Center

TopFun Skydiving

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Skydive Greene County