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coolin

After AFF?

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I've been thinking of getting an AFF license for a few months now, and have finally decided on a dropzone in Amsterdam - Paracentrum Texel. Now that I've decided, I'd like to ask what I can do after AFF?

If i want to get an A license, must I complete the rest of my jumps there? Or can I do so in dropzones elsewhere? I've tried searching for info online but there are so many different associations governing the sport that it gets quite confusing.

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Forgot to add, I'm from Singapore where the opportunities to jump wouldn't be very much. Just want to try this sport and maybe get licensed enough to jump in other countries on my own - which I've gathered means getting an A license.

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An USPA A licence will let you jump at USPA dropzones. Different countries have their own regulations, some accept USPA licenses. Student programs vary from dz to dz as well, it is up to the individual dropzone whether they accept transfer AFF students or not. There is not an easy answer here. Figure out where you would want to jump and contact them directly with your questions. Best of luck to you, it's cool that you want to make this happen even with the travel involved!

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You'll likely not be getting a USPA license (United States Parachute Association) in Texel.

More likely you'll be getting the Dutch equivalent, together with an FIA (Fédération Aéronautique Internationale) license. The FIA license is the international license but in practice I expect virtually any national license is going to be recognised throughout the world.

Once you're licensed you'll want to build on your core skills and will probably settle into one of the many sub-disciplines (there are many different sports within the sport). In principle though, you can do whatever you like, subject to the need to be sufficiently skilled to do so safely. Don't think you're going to be wing suiting off cliffs after 20 jumps, but to answer the question 'what can I do after AFF' – you can start along the road to anything you want to do, pretty much anywhere you want to do it.

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Um, Texel is an island, it's not in the city of Amsterdam as such. It's a good 2- 2 1/2 hours to get to Texel from Amsterdam (including a ferry) , and almost all other dropzones in the Netherlands are closer (in travel time) to Amsterdam I think ;)

If you jump here, you'll get a Dutch AFF license. After AFF you can continue on towards your A license, that would be a FAI license and that would be good most everywhere. Between AFF and your A, your safest bet would be to do the remaining jumps in The Netherlands as well, doesn't have to be in Texel. A Dutch A license will make your llife easier/cheaper when jumping in other countries, as a lot of dropzones will want you to do a checkout jump which may consist of an AFF-type jump. The more experience you can prove, the cheaper jumping gets :P

Beween AFF and A you mostly jump without an instructor, however here is a mandatory jumpmaster on board the plane for non-A-license jumpers and a couple of jumps are relative instruction jumps meaning you'll jump with a coach so you'll pay double price/a bit extra for those jumps.


ciel bleu,
Saskia

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I recently (Last sunday to be exact) graduated my AFF course in Paracentrum Teuge in The Netherlands.

After finishing your AFF, you are allowed to jump on your own, but ONLY on your own. You require a follow-up course to be able to jump with others. At Teuge, they call it the TRIP. (Teuge Relative Instruction Program). I'm sure Texel has something similar as well. This exists out of 10 jumps with an instructor, at only 1.75 times the price of your own jump. (Normally you pay €33,- for a single jump from 12000ft but roughly about €60 for a TRIP jump.)

During this TRIP course they teach you everything you need to know about jumping with others. Such as horizontal and vertical positioning, how to exit the plane together, etc etc.

My advice, which is exactly what I'm doing myself now as well: After you're done with your AFF, go have fun and do as many solo jumps as you can. Pick up some skills at your own phase and discover new stunts and manoeuvres step by step. Such as salto's, delta flying, or even vertical flying.

After some jumps by yourself if you think you've picked up enough skill, you can contact your local dropzone about the follow-up course.

Good luck to you mate! And let there be lots of blue skies. :)

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very silly of me, i just realised today that I've been e-mailing Paracentrum Teuge, not Paracentrum Texel. They said that it takes about 50 jumps in Holland to get an A license, and I don't have enough money to do so though. :(

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coolin

Forgot to add, I'm from Singapore where the opportunities to jump wouldn't be very much. Just want to try this sport and maybe get licensed enough to jump in other countries on my own - which I've gathered means getting an A license.



Are there places in Singapore where you can jump, or will you have to always travel to jump? If you will always have to travel to jump, the nearest or best place to travel to might also be the place to do your training. That way they would know you when you returned with more money to burn.
Instructor quote, “What's weird is that you're older than my dad!”

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Yeah I would expect it to take roughly about that many jumps. First 7 for your AFF license, then a bunch of solo jumps for your own skills, then 10 for your TRIP course, and then of course the exams for your A-license.

Skydiving is not a cheap sport. But it's hella fun! So if you have a good income, and not a whole lot of expenses (Like I do) then it's absolutely worth the money. ^^

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dthames

***Forgot to add, I'm from Singapore where the opportunities to jump wouldn't be very much. Just want to try this sport and maybe get licensed enough to jump in other countries on my own - which I've gathered means getting an A license.



Are there places in Singapore where you can jump, or will you have to always travel to jump? If you will always have to travel to jump, the nearest or best place to travel to might also be the place to do your training. That way they would know you when you returned with more money to burn.

In singapore there is one company that offers skydiving, but I'd have to take a flight to thailand or a bus to malaysia. Also, the AFF course here costs roughly twice what I'd pay for in holland and most of europe.

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Skydive jurien bay in western Australia has many Singaporean come and do the AFF course.
You can compete the AFF course, 10 jumps in 5 days. Most students complete their A license in about 20 jumps.
Have you seen my pants?
it"s a rough life, Livin' the dream
>:)

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Nicknero1405

After finishing your AFF, you are allowed to jump on your own, but ONLY on your own.



Importantly (and this is a common misconception), you are not licensed in any way - you are still a student.

Showing up at dropzone Y having completed AFF at dropzone X but without an A license is likely to lead to either disappointment, or an invitation to join dropzone X's student program (after some more evaluation, depending on what they know about you). This can be time consuming and expensive!

If you're going to learn to skydive, if you can manage it, try and plan all the way to your A. Not necessarily in one go, but in one plan at least.
--
"I'll tell you how all skydivers are judged, . They are judged by the laws of physics." - kkeenan

"You jump out, pull the string and either live or die. What's there to be good at?

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Thanks for all your advice everyone. I've decided to doy AFF in Teuge and see if i can work towards getting my A license. If I can't, then I probably will just take these 7 jumps as an experience off my bucket list, since there aren't many dropzones near my country anyway.

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coolin

Thanks for all your advice everyone. I've decided to doy AFF in Teuge and see if i can work towards getting my A license. If I can't, then I probably will just take these 7 jumps as an experience off my bucket list, since there aren't many dropzones near my country anyway.



Awesome. Maybe I'll see you in Teuge soon then? ^^ At least, I'll be there this Saturday morning assuming this heat wave isn't going to be too troublesome.

But I'll be jumping at Teuge most likely every single weekend from now on. Because skydiving is just that awesome. B|

Joellercoaster

Showing up at dropzone Y having completed AFF at dropzone X but without an A license is likely to lead to either disappointment, or an invitation to join dropzone X's student program (after some more evaluation, depending on what they know about you). This can be time consuming and expensive!



I've read somewhere about student transfers where you complete your AFF at dropzone X but then transfer to dropzone Y for your follow up course and such. But I can imagine it's a pain to get it done, and probably a waste of money and time. So yes, it'll be a good idea to stay at one particular dropzone until you finally have your A-license.

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coolin

very silly of me, i just realised today that I've been e-mailing Paracentrum Teuge, not Paracentrum Texel. They said that it takes about 50 jumps in Holland to get an A license, and I don't have enough money to do so though. :(



If money is an object, and you are going to jump at Teuge anyway, why not do staticline instead of AFF? At Teuge you only pay for the first jump course, after you are considered proficient at staticline (SL jumps are from 3.5000ft) you open your parachute yourself (at 5.000ft), after that you get to jump from 7.000 ft, 9.000ft and then 12.000 ft. All of these jumps you only have to pay your own slot + equipment rental, as here is no instructor juming with you/you have to pay for. So by the time you've spend as much as the AFF course costs you'll have many more jumps than 7 (25ish?) and are well on your way to your A license.

ciel bleu,
Saskia

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Nicknero1405

What are you talking about? Finishing your static line (420 euro) only allows you to do static line jumps right?
And following up with AFF after your static line is 900 euro, coming to a grand total of 1320 euro. While AFF from the start is 1195 euro.



Eh, no.

You might want to quit giving advise to students about their course, and going against a (Teuge) instructor?

ciel bleu,
Saskia

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dragon2

***What are you talking about? Finishing your static line (420 euro) only allows you to do static line jumps right?
And following up with AFF after your static line is 900 euro, coming to a grand total of 1320 euro. While AFF from the start is 1195 euro.



Eh, no.

You might want to quit giving advise to students about their course, and going against a (Teuge) instructor?

Then please tell me sir, what do the prices on their website represent. And why would they list those prices if it doesn't seem to be true according to you?

Of course everyone would think: "Gee, a student with only 8 jumps against a D licensed with 2400 jumps... I wonder who's right?" But I'm simply going by information I find on their own website. If that is wrong, then they should change that. Because nowhere they say anything about your AFF being free (Or well, normal jump prices) if you complete SL first.

Maybe you're going by information that was relative to you 12 years ago when you started, and things have changed that you aren't aware of? I don't know...

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Nicknero1405

******What are you talking about? Finishing your static line (420 euro) only allows you to do static line jumps right?
And following up with AFF after your static line is 900 euro, coming to a grand total of 1320 euro. While AFF from the start is 1195 euro.



Eh, no.

You might want to quit giving advise to students about their course, and going against a (Teuge) instructor?

Then please tell me sir, what do the prices on their website represent. And why would they list those prices if it doesn't seem to be true according to you?

Of course everyone would think: "Gee, a student with only 8 jumps against a D licensed with 2400 jumps... I wonder who's right?" But I'm simply going by information I find on their own website. If that is wrong, then they should change that. Because nowhere they say anything about your AFF being free (Or well, normal jump prices) if you complete SL first.

Maybe you're going by information that was relative to you 12 years ago when you started, and things have changed that you aren't aware of? I don't know...

Are you sure you know what the difference is between a SL course and an AFF course? Do you know what each entails, what skills you will have demonstrated by the end and what each qualifies you to do?

I may be misreading, but you seem to be implying that SL graduates would go on to do a full AFF course afterwards for some reason? I'm aware the Dutch regulations may vary from those in other countries but that sounds absurd and pointless.

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Why don't you ask at Teuge what a SL course entails?

A human will explain that what you thought you read is somewhat different to reality.

Then you'll realise that SL is the best way to learn to be a skydiver.

Quicker, simpler and cheaper.
My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

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turkeyphant

*********What are you talking about? Finishing your static line (420 euro) only allows you to do static line jumps right?
And following up with AFF after your static line is 900 euro, coming to a grand total of 1320 euro. While AFF from the start is 1195 euro.



Eh, no.

You might want to quit giving advise to students about their course, and going against a (Teuge) instructor?

Then please tell me sir, what do the prices on their website represent. And why would they list those prices if it doesn't seem to be true according to you?

Of course everyone would think: "Gee, a student with only 8 jumps against a D licensed with 2400 jumps... I wonder who's right?" But I'm simply going by information I find on their own website. If that is wrong, then they should change that. Because nowhere they say anything about your AFF being free (Or well, normal jump prices) if you complete SL first.

Maybe you're going by information that was relative to you 12 years ago when you started, and things have changed that you aren't aware of? I don't know...

Are you sure you know what the difference is between a SL course and an AFF course? Do you know what each entails, what skills you will have demonstrated by the end and what each qualifies you to do?

I may be misreading, but you seem to be implying that SL graduates would go on to do a full AFF course afterwards for some reason? I'm aware the Dutch regulations may vary from those in other countries but that sounds absurd and pointless.

Why would it be absurd and pointless? Correct me if I'm wrong, but doesn't Static Line mean you drop out of a plane at around 4000ft with a Static Line that automatically opens your parachute right after you exit the plane? Meaning you won't experience a free fall at all. So SL only teaches you how to control your canopy.
Teuge offers a package of a full 5 SL jumps + 1 single AFF jump so that you at least get to experience free fall in the end. And from there you could choose to continue your AFF with a remaining 6 jumps.

So please tell me how, and why they would let you free fall all by yourself, or let your AFF course be free after completing SL which doesn't teach you anything about free fall?

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Sjeesh will you quit it already, or at least take it to PMs? Since none of this is relevant for the OP.

I suggest you start out by reading the BVR. 2 articles above the camera article I quoted to you in another thread. Also try reading the Teuge website again: click.

2nd, read my previous post back, this is what a staticline progression course entails at Teuge:

Quote

At Teuge you only pay for the first jump course, after you are considered proficient at staticline (SL jumps are from 3.5000ft) you open your parachute yourself (at 5.000ft), after that you get to jump from 7.000 ft, 9.000ft and then 12.000 ft. All of these jumps you only have to pay your own slot + equipment rental, as here is no instructor juming with you/you have to pay for. So by the time you've spend as much as the AFF course costs you'll have many more jumps than 7 (25ish?) and are well on your way to your A license.



I'll be giving the SL/combi course tomorrow at Teuge, and I gave the course 2 weeks ago too, so I kinda know what's relevant still :D

The combi course is an option, and a fairly expensive one too if you do decide to continue on to AFF. However not many people actually do that (because of the costs), they just continue on to freefall by themselves.

You are what is dubbed an "AFF baby", can't imagine yourself all alone in freefall as a student can you :ph34r: Yet that is still the way most people at Teuge become skydivers, especially those that wanted a SL wing (military jumpers) first or just don't want to plunk down so much money in one go.

AFF is nice if you want quick results, have the money and can handle a lot of tasks at the same time. SL progression is nice if you want a wing, if you don't have the cash in one go, if you want to take things more slowly, less tasks per jump.

Both will get you to your A.

AFF will have better freefall skills at first.
SL will have way more jumps for the same amount of money, so many more landing circuits flown and landings performed.

After getting your A, you can usually still spot the difference between a former AFF student and SL: the SL jumper will generally have much less difficulty getting out "low" (2.5k-3.5k) :D

ciel bleu,
Saskia

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turkeyphant


I may be misreading, but you seem to be implying that SL graduates would go on to do a full AFF course afterwards for some reason? I'm aware the Dutch regulations may vary from those in other countries but that sounds absurd and pointless.



That is true at Texel though, which is why I made the distinction if OP was going to jump in Teuge.

At Texel, you can do SL or AFF but they do not offer SL progression - no jumping heights of 7k/9k are offered. It's 3.5-5k, or 12k. So after completing your SL at Texel, you would have to continue on to AFF, or go jump at a DZ that does offer SL progression (most do I think, Texel and Rotterdam do not).

ciel bleu,
Saskia

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