Canopy piloting

Canopy piloting encompasses several disciplines, all involving the flight of a skydiving parachute.

Pro Swooping Tour Professional competition courses mark the entry gates with wind blades stretching five feet tall, where some part of the pilot's body must break the imaginary line across the top of the entry gate pair, often only 30 feet apart.

On a freestyle course, competitors drag through a large body of water, or touch the surface with different body parts and in different positions while maintaining nearly constant contact with the water.

Gaining popularity both with competitors and spectators, freestyle puts the canopy pilot in contact with water at high speeds, increasing the risk of a violent impact.

These disciplines differ from swooping in that the canopy pilot flies his canopy in close proximity to the ground, descending a mountainside or other gradient or, in certain conditions, hovering several meters above the ground, much like a paragliding pilot.