AboutMike Turoff Expertise expert/master parachutist and an Instructor Examiner in the sport of Skydiving. Mike is a licensed (jump) pilot and parachute rigger, who is an analytical chemist in the "regular working world." As a dedicated instructor, Mike has made over 3,400 jumps since 1977. Mike has contributed to many of the training materials and exams used by USPA and the sport. He has authored numerous articles dealing with safety and training practices that have appeared in both Parachutist and Skydiving magazines. Mike participates as an evaluator at AFF Training Camps and Certification Courses and is a rated to perform Tandem instruction using both the Relative Workshop and Strong Enterprises gear. Mike is co-author of "Parachuting, The Skydiver`s Handbook and the CD-ROM text for "Skydiving, A Multimedia Reference."
Question "Hi Good Evening Sir,
This is Prashant Bisht from India, i would like to ask u some questions regarding sky diving/freefall.
(a) Sir I am static line jumper and experience of 22 jumps and still doing static line jumping, after how many more jumps i can do freefall/skydiving?
(b) how much will it cost to complete a skydiver/freefaller training?
(c) after how many jumps i can be a licensed freefaller/skydiver?
(d) Have u any training school in india?
Answer Freefall/Skydiving can be done on the very first jump as either a Tandem passenger or an Accelerated Freefall student. However, in the US, a static line program or an instructor assisted freefall program (where the instructor holds and deploys the hand-deployed pilot chute as the student departs the aircraft) usually require a minimum of five static line or IAF type jumps before the first "hop and pop" freefall skydive.
Cost: Basically, in the US, you are looking at between $2500 to $3,000 to complete your freefall training in order to become an "A License" (basic rating) skydiver.
No, I don't have any privileges to train in India. If you want to find a skydiving school in your country, look on the www.dropzone.com website or you could even inquire of the www.uspa.org website and see if they have any affiliated group members in your country.
To find out more about skydiving in general, try getting a copy of our book "Parachuting, The Skydiver's Handbook" from your local library or order it from www.parapublishing.com. It contains a wealth of information and answers to many questions you have not asked.
