Skydiving Trends - New And Better Ways To Jump From A Perfectly Good Plane

17 January 2020

Ever since the Emperor of China was saved from a burning building when his servants hastily created the first recorded parachute around 1600, man has been enthralled with the concept of safely jumping from very high places. Although there was continuous curiosity and interest, the concept did not really become reliable and consistent until the US military began perfecting the process used to deploy troops.  After that, it was game on. Parachutes were used for entertainment at shows as well as for purely adrenaline rush inducing recreation. 

Skydivers have continuously tinkered with their equipment such as to make it smaller, lighter, and easier to control. This has led to parachutes that can be used in an endless variety of situations. But just like any good recreational activity, it can always be made just a little bit better. So it is with skydiving. Some recent trends in the sport have done a lot to make the sport more exciting and mainstream but most importantly, safer

• Automatic Activation Device (AAD) - These devices are used to deploy the reserve parachute automatically at a certain altitude if the main chute has not been deployed manually.  This safety feature has become important in the event that the skydiver is unable to open the chute due to things such as injury, panic or mechanical failure.  Having the reserve chute automatically deploy in such an event has added to the overall safety of the sport and contributes to more and more people willing to give it a try.

• Wearable Cameras - Thanks to the advent of lightweight wearable cameras that can be attached to helmets or other parts of the body, there has been a huge boost in the number of divers recording their first or most daring jumps. In our world of selfies and viral videos, this gives divers another opportunity to get some screen time.

• Social Media - Following along with the increased use of cameras during jumps is the rise in exposure to the sport on social media. Whether it is watching videos of exciting jumps or the large increase in the availability of online reviews, social media has played a huge role in getting more and more participants to take the first dive.

As the sport continues to grow in popularity, excitement, and safety, more and more people will be finding new and better ways to jump out of a perfectly good airplane.