Skydive Milwaukee / Sky Knights SPC

My first visit to Skydive Milwaukee was with a group of seven co-workers to do a "team day" of tandem skydiving. We were welcomed by the reception staff and were shown a safety video and had to do some paperwork.

We didn't have to wait very long at all. We were off to gear up with the tandem instructors.

The tandem instructors were awesome. They were very, very professional, but still managed to help you stay relaxed throughout the process. Obviously we were all a little nervous (me more than some).
They went over the details of the skydive with us (what we were and were not supposed to do) and suited us up. They explained what would happen and talked to us about safety (the rules that applied during our tandem skydive). They also answered our questions on the plane and helped keep us at ease by keeping things light-hearted. The plane ride up was quick but very enjoyable. It was a nice comfortable plane (a PAC) and a clear day so we could see for miles (see Milwaukee, Chicago, Kenosha, and lots more).

The skydive itself was truly an amazing experience. Going to the door was surreal. The freefall is dramatic and exciting. Once the parachute opened it was such an enjoyable ride. Beforehand, I thought it would be really fast, but you basically float around for several minutes taking in the beautiful scenery. The area that Skydive Milwaukee is located in, western Waukesha County near Milwaukee, with so many lakes, trees, farms, was amazingly beautiful.

The facility itself is very nice, clean, and family friendly. The bathroom was spotless (a must for my OCD).

My wife and children came to watch and had a very nice time. There are picnic tables, vending machines, a covered area to sit in, food nearby, a roof observation area, beautiful views and more.
Everyone there was very friendly, knowledgeable and helpful.

I liked it so much that I brought my 18 year old son (who wasn’t there that day) to do a tandem with me.

That was it for me; I got hooked on skydiving. Since then I’ve done about 50 more skydives and earned my A license. I’ve made new friends and found a sport that I really enjoy.

I highly, highly, recommend Skydive Milwaukee. Skydive Milwaukee is a club, not a business so it’s much more of a family atmosphere.

I started with a static line progression course and was very disappointed with how it was going. I felt I wasn't getting what I needed..so an instructor pointed me towards Sky Knights and a friend pointed me towards Skydive Chicago. Skydive Chicago would have ultimately been my first choice because of the "A-license in a week" program and it's just a superb place to learn..but..with the economy my vacation was taken away..BOO! So I checked out Sky Knights when a tandem discount was offered on the web. I can't say enough about Sky Knights. They were fantastic! My tandem was the most fun yet and I signed up for AFF that day.
AFF 1st jump went awesome and I finally felt like this was where I needed to be (even though it is a 2.5 hour drive for me). Mary,Lisa and Mooey were my instructors and they were awesome. Lisa met with me for a "real" debriefing (which I had never really had with the static line jumps)and we set up for the next level jump. I feel like I'm going to get a lot out of the program and come out knowing 1,000 times more from the AFF program than the static line.
The staff is awesome and on top of everything..they offer a deferred payment program!! I've been anxiously awaiting becoming a licensed skydiver for a year & I'm going to get that license this year come humidity or snow!!
I highly recommend Sky Knights.

Had been jumping at Atmosphair but needed to find a DZ with more weekday availability to get through my AFF due to my schedule and family. Planning to take advantage of both DZs one I get the AFF program tackled, so it's nice to know now that I have two great options close by.

Went out to East Troy on a weekday afternoon with my toddler and log book in tow, with the intent just to check it out and ask about the option of AFF jumps after having jumped with another program. I was told that not only could I transfer over to their AFF progression, but that if I wanted to get jumping that day I could (and hell yes, I wanted to jump, after near 6 weeks on the ground :)

Sasha at the front desk/manifest was awesome on the phone with directions and in person, in helping me get my jumps figured out, talking with the other staff about my situation, and helping out with the kiddo, which was certainly above and beyond her responsibilities/duties. She has also gone out of her way to accommodate my scheduling needs and keep me posted on getting the jumps that I need in asap, and I'll be going back out tomorrow.

My instructors for the two jumps I made were Tom and Mur, both were a lot of fun, positive, passionate about skydiving, and very thorough. The AFF program is a bit different, so we went through my log book and what I'd done prior, and decided to go back one level since the program includes some 180 turns and forward motion which I'd not yet done. So I did their program's AFF-2, passed that, and I wound up making the sunset load as well for a second jump that day.

The debriefing was extremely thorough and both instructors had helmet cams, which was really useful for me to see exactly what my body position was like. The PAC aircraft is awesome!! The AFF program at SkyKnights introduces a few more maneuvers a bit earlier than the other program I started, but also has less associated paperwork- it seems they don't have you plan out the spot and calculate the winds and all that like the other program I was doing, which I think is a helpful thing to have students do, but on the other hand, I felt that the written handbook and the pre-jump prep was thorough enough that I did not feel that I suffered from any lack of training, and it was definitely a smooth transition, both to a new dz, and back into jumping after an ankle injury.

As an AFF student, I cannot take advantage of this yet, but it appears they also organize a lot of cool events, like a jump for diabetes recently, helicopter jumps, and coaching days and workshops and such.. looking forward to taking advantage of this down the line.

I definitely love jumping at Ft Atkinson, which I still consider my "home" dz, because of the kid friendly set-up and close knit community- SkyKnights is a bit bigger, and has less kids present at least when I went; however, I still would describe it as extremely family friendly, if not family 'centered.' There are dogs there that are apparently not too kid friendly, which is a bit concerning, but the owner seems good about keeping them controlled.. I also love going to Ft. A and knowing everyone, but it seems that over time one would get that at SkyKnights to some extent as well- it is a bit bigger, but not a big dz to the point of feeling overwhelmed or lost in the crowd, though I have not yet seen it on weekends. However, I definitely did not interat much with people outside of the manifest and AFF-Is, so you may need to take a bit more initiative at SkyKnights in talking and getting connected with other jumpers.

That said, the ability of a slightly bigger dropzone/club like SkyKnights to accommodate my schedule this summer and offer more days to jump is important to me right now and worth a slight increase in size/number of people and slightly more effort to get to know and talk with people over time, plus I will mostly be there weekdays anyway, so not too worried about the weekend rush or things getting too chaotic or crowded.

Overall I was really happy with everyone who helped me with the smooth transition and welcomed me, and cannot wait to go back tomorrow! I'd highly recommend the program for AFF based on my experience so far, especially if you need to jump weekdays. That said, if you are a weekend only jumper due to work/school stuff, Atmosphair might be the better bet since it is a bit smaller- however, they are a but understaffed this season so maybe it's a toss up as to weekend availability..

As for the programs, I'd say AFF jumps at Atmosphair are a bit more self-led and involve more networking with fellow AFFers to plan for the jump, whereas (so far) SkyKnights seems to be rooted more in verbal dialogue and physical practice with the actual AFF-Is. I am comfortable with both approaches; for others, it may be a personal preference thing. I do enjoy the camraderie with other AFF students at Atmosphair but that may be comparing apples to oranges since I don't have other AFF students from a shared FJC, not having taken it at SkyKnights.. thus I also can't speak to type or quality of FJC training at SkyKnights/East Troy, obviously.

For experienced jumpers, I would definitely recommend making a visit to SkyKnights and jumping the PAC! Thanks Sasha, Tom, and Mary for getting me in the air and welcoming my little one and for making the transition smooth; looking forward to tomorrow!

Tandem, AFF & fun jumpers, this is the place to go. Jumped at many DZ’s over the years, this one rates among the best. Nice up to date variety of student and rental gear. Very accommodating and by far the most friendly and professional staff to be found anywhere. Super facilities, well maintained aircraft and great rolling countryside aerial views.

I went for the 2009 CReW boogie. This DZ pulled out all the stops. They even brought in a second PAC to make sure we had the lift capacity needed to set the new WI CRW record! They even had packers that know how to pack a crw rig. fantastic facilities and friendly staff.

Also by far the easiest DZ to get to that I've ever been to. Less than 5 minutes off of the interstate.

Keep up the great work guys. I'll definitely be back for next year's CReW boogie.

The PAC rocks. The people are the friendliest. The location and midair scenery is awesome.

I felt really nervous about going to the DZ for the first time to watch my husband jump, but the people there are so great and welcoming that I ended up jumping myself.Really great place to jump.

I did a first time jump with static line. Prices were very reasonable, first time jump class was short and well taught, the people were very friendly and helpful. Someone even gave me a copy of my first exit that they filmed from their helmet cam. Everyone was very enthuisastic about finding out about how i like my first jump. My little sister was supposed to jump with me but chickened out and the instructer was very patient with her and did not pressure her to jump. They even allowed her to go up with a load. This is a great DZ and I will definatly be heading back there again to go after my licences.

I was in town and came by for a couple jumps. It was a Saturday in the winter, and it was busy, so I waited a while between loads (they only fly a 182 in the winter). Lots of fun, I cant wait to go back in the summer when they are turning loads in a bigger plane!

I was talked into a tandem skydive by my neighbor. I was such an excellent experience, That I will be going back to start static line lessons.

I had the best time of my life at skyknights...I jumped tandum with my two friends for a bachelor party on the 26th of May, and the jumpmasters were the greatest!!! I thought I was going there just to jump out of a plane, but I made about 20 new friends in the process...THANKS SAM!!

Sky Knights are the friendliest skydivers I've ever met. They may not be a huge dropzone, but they always welcome new people and show them a good time. They take the time to meet students and talk to them. I was terrified my first time and they talked to me until I was relaxed and had trust in my jumpmasters. I encourage everyone to stop by if you're in the area. If you're used to Chicago, stop and see how friendly a smaller dropzone can be!