In most designs, this will lead to the seat being propelled out of and away from the aircraft, carrying the occupant with it, by means of either an explosive charge or a rocket propulsion system.

In 2017, members of one organization, the United States Parachute Association (USPA) reported 2,585 skydiving injuries sufficiently severe to require resort to a medical care facility.

In many countries, either the local regulations or the liability-conscious prudence of the drop zone owners require that parachutists must have attained the age of majority before engaging in the sport.

[7] Since the majority of parachute injuries occur upon landing (approximately 85%),[8] the greatest emphasis within ground training is usually on the proper parachute landing fall (PLF), which seeks to orient the body so as to evenly disperse the impact through flexion of several large, insulating muscles (such as the medial gastrocnemius, tibialis anterior, rectus femoris, vastus medialis, biceps femoris, and semitendinosus),[9] as opposed to individual bones, tendons, and ligaments which break and tear more easily.

[10] This tendency is displayed in the accompanying chart, which shows the significantly higher proportion of wrist and ankle injuries among the 186 injured in a 110,000 parachute jump study.

Due to the possibility of fractures (commonly occurring on the tibia and the ankle mortise), it is recommended that parachutists wear supportive footwear.

In the United States, the USPA's Basic Safety Requirements prohibit solo student skydivers from jumping in winds exceeding 14 mph while using ram-air equipment.

Jumpers and pilots of the dropping aircraft similarly bear responsibility of following the other VFR elements,[12] in particular ensuring that the air traffic at the moment of jump does not create a hazard.

It is also the most interesting discipline for spectators due to the closeness of action (a few meters) and the possibility to be practiced everywhere (sport ground, stadium, urban place...).

Previously called Canopy Relative Work, or CREW for short, is a skydive where the participants open their parachutes very quickly after leaving the aircraft with the intention of flying in close proximity to each other.

Competitors jump from a height of 2200 m to 2500 m. They rush into an acceleration stage for 15 to 20 seconds and then run their series of manoeuvres benefiting to the maximum of the stored speed.

Angle flying was presented for the first time in 2000 at the World Freestyle Competitions, the European Espace Boogie, and the Eloy Freefly Festival.

The technique consists of flying diagonally with a determinate relation between angle and trajectory speed of the body, to obtain an air stream that allows for control of flight.

Above 30 meters (98 feet) jumpers flying their canopy have a good view of the landing zone normally because of reflected ambient light/moon light.

While more dangerous than regular skydiving and more difficult to schedule, two night jumps are required by the USPA for a jumper to obtain their D (expert) license.Pond swooping is a form of competitive parachuting wherein canopy pilots attempt to touch down and glide across a small body of water, and onto the shore.

Swoop ponds are not deep enough to drown in under ordinary circumstances, their main danger being from the concussive force of an incorrectly executed maneuver.

Cars, bicycles, motorcycles, vacuum cleaners, water tanks, and inflatable companions have also been thrown out the back of an aircraft.

[21] Another example of this is "hit and rock", a variant of accuracy landing devised to let people of varying skill levels compete for fun.

In most cases, national representative bodies, as well as local drop zone operators, require that participants carry certification attesting to their training their level of experience in the sport, and their proven competence.

In Brazil, the Centro Nacional de Paraquedismo (CNP) sets in Boituva, where many records have been broken and where it is known for being the second-largest center in the world and the largest in the Southern Hemisphere.

[citation needed] Within the sport, associations promote safety, technical advances, training and certification, competition and other interests of their members.

AADs can contain either void or pyrotechnic load, and the rest of the parachute also consists of several very uncommon metallic parts and cables, all of which could trigger scanners of the security screening.

[citation needed] In order to justify the presence of "suspicious" content inside the parachute (explosive, vacuum, metal pieces, cables), travelers are encouraged to announce that they are traveling with a parachute when they buy their airplane ticket, and to produce the following documents when asked by the airport security's staff : National skydiving associations usually list on their websites a piece of advice concerning this matter.

[35][36] In 1914, while doing demonstrations for the U.S. Army, a parachute pioneer named Tiny Broadwick deployed her chute manually, thus becoming the first person to jump free-fall.

[38] During the late 1950s, Captain Joseph Kittinger of the United States was assigned to the Aerospace Medical Research Laboratories at Wright-Patterson AFB in Dayton, Ohio.

[citation needed] The first, from 76,400 feet (23,300 m) in November 1959 was a near tragedy when an equipment malfunction caused him to lose consciousness, but the automatic parachute saved him (he went into a flat spin at a rotational velocity of 120 rpm; the g-force at his extremities was calculated to be over 22 times that of gravity, setting another record).

Towing a small drogue chute for stabilization, he fell for 4 minutes and 36 seconds reaching a maximum speed of 614 mph (988 km/h)[39] before opening his parachute at 14,000 feet (4,300 m).

For the series of jumps, Kittinger was decorated with an oak leaf cluster to his Distinguished Flying Cross and awarded the Harmon Trophy by President Dwight Eisenhower.

On 14 October 2012, Felix Baumgartner broke the records previously set by Kittinger for the highest free fall, the highest manned helium balloon flight, and the fastest free fall; he jumped from 128,100 feet (39,000 m), reaching 833.9 mph (1342 km/h) - Mach 1.24, faster than the speed of sound.

[43] The cadence Blood on the Risers, about parachuting in the military, is sung to the tune Battle Hymn of the Republic, also known as John Brown's Body.