Your Path: Solo Skydiving to the USPA A License

Your Path: Solo Skydiving to the USPA A License

The solo path exists because tandem alone never teaches you to fly a parachute. USPA describes three training routes that do. Accelerated freefall, or AFF, gives you your own parachute and two instructors beside you, with several hours of training before the first jump. Static line and instructor-assisted deployment, or IAD, start with a parachute that opens on exit or by the instructor's help and build toward longer freefall. Wikipedia adds that AFF costs more because it uses more instructor time per student.

The destination is the USPA A license. The A-License requirements page lists the core items: a total of 25 jumps, active USPA membership, study of the Skydiver's Information Manual, completion of the progression card requirements and a practical check dive. You also need at least 75 percent on the written exam and 100 percent on the oral exam. Tandem, military freefall and static line jumps can be counted toward the 25 when documentation is verified. That matters if you already did a tandem.

Once licensed, USPA says an A license holder may jump without supervision, pack their own main parachute, take part in formation skydives and train for water landings. Those privileges are why the license is the natural first goal. They are also why the cost keeps going: after the license you pay for lift tickets, packing or your own gear, and coaching for new disciplines.

Choosing a route is mostly a question of where you live and how you learn. AFF tends to reach freefall skills faster and is common at larger drop zones. Static line and IAD progressions suit smaller drop zones and cost less per jump at the start, but freefall time is minimal at first, so they take more jumps to reach the same skills. Whichever you choose, ask the drop zone for its written progression chart, since each school sets prices and level names.

Consider the costs as a set of example planning ranges. A first-jump or AFF course commonly runs $250 to $400 per level in early levels, and a full AFF program often lands between $1,500 and $3,000. After the program, each jump at a typical drop zone costs roughly $25 to $40 for a lift ticket, plus packing fees and gear rental of $10 to $40 per jump. Reaching 25 jumps might total $2,500 to $4,500 before you buy your own equipment. These are not published prices, so use the skydiving cost calculator with your drop zone's quote.

A worked example shows how the money moves. Assume a $1,800 AFF program covering the first seven levels, then 18 more jumps at $30 per ticket, $8 per pack and $25 per rental. That is $1,800 plus 18 times $63, or $1,134, for a total of $2,934. Add the $80 to $100 annual USPA membership that the A license requires and your total for the first license year sits near $3,000. Weather days and recurrency jumps will push the real figure up.

Age and health come first, as they do for every skydive. USPA says that in most cases you must be 18, and it tells every jumper to consult a physician about fitness. Drop zones set their own weight and fitness limits. If those questions give you pause, run the quiz again with the medical answer and follow the official form. This result is a cost and path guide. It is not a judgment on anyone's suitability.

One more planning point: ask how the drop zone handles weather and recurrency. Jump days are lost to wind and cloud, and a long gap between jumps may mean a refresher or repeat level that adds cost. Build a cushion of ten to twenty percent into your budget for those days, and pick a drop zone close enough that you can jump often, since steady practice is what moves you from level to level.

Dollar ranges on this page are example planning figures, not published price lists. Prices vary by drop zone, dive shop, region and season, so replace them with a written quote before you budget.

Source: USPA, Your First Skydive (uspa.org/students/your-first-skydive); USPA, A-License Requirements and Forms (uspa.org/members/licenses/a-license-requirements-and-forms); Wikipedia, Skydiving; Wikipedia, Recreational diver training; PADI, Open Water Diver course page (store.padi.com). Note: dollar ranges are example planning figures, not published prices; get a written quote

Planning guidance and estimates, not medical, legal or immigration advice. Fees, allowances, limits and entry rules change, so confirm with your airline, cruise line, customs agency or the official government source before you book or travel.

How Solo Skydiving: AFF, Static Line or IAD to the A License compares

* Illustrative figures and notes, rounded -- use the calculators below for your exact numbers, and always check the official source for current rules and prices.