Parachute landing fall

At the moment first contact is made with the ground, the person goes from an upright position to absorbing the impact by allowing the body to buckle and go toward a horizontal position while rotating toward the side (generally the direction with the dominant directional speed).

When executed properly, this technique is capable of allowing a parachutist to survive uninjured during landing speeds that would otherwise cause severe injury or even death.

While landing under a parachute canopy, the jumper's feet strike the ground first and, immediately, they let their legs collapse, with the body following sideways to distribute the landing shock sequentially along five points of body contact with the ground: During a parachute landing fall, the jumper's legs are slightly bent at the knee, the chin is tucked in, and the parachute risers may be grasped in an arm-bar protecting the face and throat, with the elbows tucked into the sides to prevent injury.

With repeated practice by jumping from a shoulder height platform onto the ground or into a sawdust pit, parachutists can learn to make smooth falls automatically, with a reflex action.

When arriving at greater vertical speed under a round canopy, the parachute landing fall prevents injuries to the feet, ankles, legs, hips, or upper body.