FAQ's About Skydiving

There is no doubt that skydiving is an extreme sport. After all, you are jumping from a high altitude and there is a chance that you could plunge to your death. But there are measures to prevent that from happening and usually one of the many questions people ask about this activity.

First, is skydiving safe? Skydiving is considered to be safe when there is only an average of 35 fatalities or even less per year. There are more than 2 million skydivers in the US so that is a very small figure. The cause of most of the fatalities is carelessness on the part of the jumper and not faulty equipment. This is why the equipment used needs to be checked and rechecked before a jump is made.

Is there a minimum age limit for skydiving? Here in the US, you must be at least 18 years of age. In other countries like the UK, the age limit is much lower since you can jump at the age of 16. There is also no limit to what age you can jump as long as you are in good physical condition which means someone who is pushing 60 of higher can still do it.

Do skydiving centers enforce a weight limit? The answer is no. Anyone can make the jump but if they weigh 226 pounds and above, there are additional charges that need to be paid.

Can you jump if you have a health condition? It depends but you will not be allowed to do should you be epileptic, have heart ailments or obese.

Is there special equipment you need to go skydiving? There are 5 basic things you need to go skydiving. These are namely the backpack, jumpsuit, helmet, altimeter and parachute. All of these should be in good working condition so you will not encounter any problems when you make the jump.

What happens if the parachute does not open? Fortunately, all skydivers carry a second parachute in their backpack. Once they pull the cord, this will deploy so you will descend safely into the ground.

What are odds that you need to use your second parachute? The good news is that this is very rare because the equipment that you rent is inspected by a certified FAA or Federal Aviation Administration rigger.

Are bad landings often in skydiving? The answer is no but they do happen. This is why you are trained on the ground first to teach you how to land safely but sometimes the wind or carelessness on the part of the jumper may cause this to occur.

Skydiving is a safe extreme sport which you should probably try out if you want to experience the thrill of jumping from a high altitude. There are many skydiving centers around and they are committed to make this experience a safe and memorable one so you can do it again.

If you just want to try it out, you can visit one and sign up for tandem skydiving where an instructor will be the one to wear the suit and guide you the moment you jump off the plane so you enjoy the view. The rates of the jumps vary so you should compare the prices of the different skydiving centers before taking the plunge.