The London Parachute School is a BPA affiliated parachuting centre and skydiving drop zone at Chiltern Park Aerodrome at Ipsden, near Wallingford, Oxfordshire
The British Parachute Association (BPA) is the national governing body for sport parachuting in the United Kingdom.
Parachuting is a method of transiting from a high point to Earth with the aid of gravity, involving the control of speed during the descent with the use of a parachute or parachutes. It may involve more or less free-falling which is a period when the parachute has not yet been deployed and the body gradually accelerates to terminal velocity.
A drop zone (DZ) is a place where parachutists or parachuted supplies land. It can be an area targeted for landing by paratroopers, or a base from which recreational parachutists and skydivers take off in aircraft and land under parachutes. In the latter case, it is often beside a small airport, frequently sharing the facility with other general aviation.
The drop zone operates a Turbine Cessna 208B Grand Caravan. [1] The centre provides student training in the Ram Air Progression System, Accelerated Freefall (AFF) and tandem skydiving. [2]
RAPS or Ram Air Progression System is a parachuting training system designed to take a student from beginner to the FAI A License using square ram air canopies.
Tandem skydiving or tandem parachuting refers to a type of skydiving where a student skydiver is connected to a harness attached to a tandem instructor. The instructor guides the student through the whole jump from exit through freefall, piloting the canopy, and landing. The student needs only minimal instruction before making a tandem jump with the instructor. In the United States most skydiving centers and clubs require that you be 18 years or older to skydive whereas in other countries the minimum age can be lower or higher. This is one of three commonly used training methods for beginning skydivers; the others being static line and Accelerated Freefall.
