Nothing makes us more excited than to hear that someone is interested in skydiving solo. To us, that means adding another member to our growing family – welcome sky babies! In all seriousness though, skydiving can be fun but it is no joke. Skydiving solo is a rewarding, challenging, and fantastic achievement – but a risky feat nonetheless. So listen up! This is everything you need to know about how many tandems you’ll need before going solo and other requirements before achieving your solo skydiving license.
Skydiving solo isn’t as easy as it sounds – meaning you won’t be able to just walk up to the dropzone and ask to jump by yourself. But why? Safety is our number one priority, so as much as we would love to get you solo skydiving right away – we will need to follow the steps necessary to responsibly skydive.
Skydiving can be much more complex than fresh eyes may notice at first glance. Before completing a solo skydive, there are certain safety precautions, training classes, and additional supervised jumps that you’ll need to complete – let’s dive into those solo skydiving requirements!
This answer can vary depending on which dropzone you decide to jump at. At Skydive Danielson, we require 2 training tandems.
We think this is the best way to get a feel for skydiving and knock off some of those first jump jitters so you can focus on what you should be doing while on your solo training jumps. Tandem skydiving is the best introduction to the world of solo skydiving because you will get the experience of a skydive without having to deal with all the responsibilities that come with it. You’ll be attached to a highly-trained and experienced United States Parachute Association (USPA) certified tandem instructor who will perform all duties necessary to allow you to just enjoy the experience.
The biggest reason why we require two training tandems is that we believe it is a safer method that offers hands-on learning alongside a trained professional. You’ll be able to get a feel for how to fly and land the parachute with your instructor by your side guiding you along the way. This will give you a huge jumpstart in getting comfortable with flying the parachute all by yourself when the time comes.
When learning to skydive at Skydive Danielson, we do things a little bit differently to enhance the student experience and create safer skydivers.
Coach Jumps: Complete and pass 5 coach jumps and learn group freefall skills.
Self-Supervised Jumps: Complete 12 solo skydives.
3-4 Hour Parachute Packing Class: Learn to pack your parachute, and jump it!
Check Dive: Complete and pass your last student jump with an AFF Instructor. WOOHOOO!
You’ll need to complete and pass all 25 jumps total to complete A license (those training tandems you did will count towards your jumps)!
*Solo skydiving requirements vary from dropzone to dropzone. However, all USPA-member dropzone must use the guide provided by the USPA Integrated Student Program (Cat A-H jumps) and complete all requirements listed on the USPA “A License” Proficiency Card and complete 25 jumps total.
Becoming a solo skydiver means granting yourself the freedom to jump anywhere without needing supervision and you’ll be able to jump with other skydiver friends! From there, the learning opportunities are endless.
Have more questions about solo skydiving? Contact one of our awesome team members today! Blue skies!