How To Become a Skydiver

Tuesday, May 21, 2019

How To Become a Skydiver

For some, skydiving is a once in a lifetime experience. For others, it’s a lifetime hobby, through which they meet new friends, learn, progress and even compete. You may be thinking, how can I become a skydiver. Well we break it down for you.

how to become a skydiver

People who choose to become a certified skydiver do so because they love it so much the first time they try it, or it’s something they’ve always wanted to try. Whether you’ve made a tandem skydive or you’ve never jumped before, here’s everything you need to know to answer the question, how to become a skydiver!

Becoming a skydiver: your first step

The first step to becoming a skydiver is to find a skydiving center that can help you learn.

Here at Skydive Carolina, we love to welcome new skydivers. Our team of instructors is fully qualified in teaching people to skydive.

skydiving instructors

When looking for a skydiving center, be sure to find out about the qualifications of its instructional team. The USPA, which is an organization that provides guidance to skydiving centers, is the most-known organization of its kind and can help you find skydiving centers.

uspa parachute association how to become a skydiver

You’ll also need to think about practicalities like location. Skydiving is an awesome sport and you’re going to want to do it lots! Finding a center which is conveniently located for you is important. It’s also worth checking the skydiving center out before booking your lessons; go for the day, meet the office crew and instructional time, speak to the regular jumpers and get a feel for the vibe. After all, you’ll be spending plenty of time there once you qualify!

Skydive Carolina's main hangar

Become a skydiver through AFP

The most popular way to learn to skydive in the US is through a system universally called AFF, or here at Skydive Carolina, “AFP”.

AFP stands for ‘Advanced Freefall Program’. Its popularity comes from the speed with which students can progress through the ‘levels’ and the fact that you jump from the maximum altitude from the very first jump. The AFP program is split into a series of ‘levels’. Each level is designed to teach you a new skill and to hone your existing skills.

From the second jump, and after some ground training, you can wear your own parachute. You’ll jump with an instructor who will hold on to you, to help ensure that you fall in a stable position. As you progress, your instructors start to let go of you and let you fly free. In later levels, you jump completely by yourself.

learn to skydive aff accelerated freefall how to become a skydiver

At the end of the program and completing all the requirements, you’ll be a qualified, licensed skydiver. This means you can jump on your own. When you have a basic license, you can also jump around the world at drop zones where your rating is recognized. It’s the key to starting your skydiving career.