The most obvious difference between normal skydiving and tandem parachuting is with tandem style two people are attached together. One person is the passenger, the other the tandem-master. The passenger is simply along for the ride while the tandem-master has all the jump responsibilities.
Beyond the obvious difference of two people skydiving together, in the tandem option a larger parachute is used to accommodate the extra weight. The reason tandem jumps are such a large percentage of annual jumps is because many first time parachutist choose this form of skydiving.
Jumping as a tandem is the safest way a person can be introduced to all the thrills of parachuting. Tandem-masters are highly skilled skydivers with hundreds of jumps in experience behind them. With a rookie skydiver there is a possibility of panic attack, disorientation and passing out. If this happens in tandem skydiving, the tandem-master can safely return both skydivers to earth on his own. Besides being the safest way for a novice parachutist to skydive, it is also the fastest way to skydive. If a person decides they want to skydive Monday morning they can have their first skydive by Monday afternoon through tandem skydiving.
Freefall training can be too much for some people, and can cost a bit more than tandem. These people may try an instant-open jump, or static-line jumping. This is similar to what you’ve probably seen in old war movies, when parachuters leap out of a plane and their parachute cord is automatically pulled. In training sessions, this occurs at a soothing 3,500 feet level. Or if this is too high for you, you can even learn to skydive on the ground. Wind tunnel technology has progressed to the point to make indoor skydiving a fun, and realistic, experience.
Sky Diving What A Rush
Posted on June 1, 2009 by Thomas Husnik
