AFF and full helmets

[npole 1]

Hi everyone, I know about the general rule of letting a student using a full face helmet after a certain number of jumps (because of reasons that have been already talked about here on the forum...), after have completed the AFF course, however I see people doing their AFF course with it. So the question: is it just a consolidated internal rules across the majority (but not all) DZ, but it isn't enforced and it remains at the discretion of your instructor.. or?

I'm wearing contact lens (and sometime glasses), I find the goggles really uncomfortable, nor that is the end of the world making 20 jumps with them before switching to a full helmet, but I was curious about why some DZ are allowing it and others doesn't.

[husslr187 24]

I find it harder to look at my handles with a full face helmet on. not significantly harder but enough to be noticeable. a fogged up visor could be one less variable they don’t want to deal with or train for. much easier to pull goggles down if needed.

[Maddingo 21]

I did my AFF with full face from the beginning, a lot of us did. No issues. Modern helmets are no problem for jumping. If a student demonstrates he can operate the helmet locking mechanism easily it's fine. I never experienced any serious fogging, only on particular late autumn days, when it was cold. But noone learns to jump in humid, foggy, cold conditions and even then it only happened after the canopy deployed because the hot air from my breath started condensing a bit on the cold lens.

The pros for beginners in a FF is certainly noise cancelation and reduction of sensory overload. I jumped without a fullface on just to see how it feels. Personally if you'd add the loud noise, cold, and that hard air blowing into every hole on your face I'd be much more stressed as a novice jumper. It also protects your face.

It's more about the cost, it's normal AFF schools won't pay big bucks for FF helmets just so that the students will rek them.

[npole 1]

I find it fun to update my own thread after 14 months... in the end I started the AFF course last year (mid Feb), bad weather and then the Covid hit hard and I managed to complete it only in June 2020! As of Today (still Covid lock downs now and then), I manage to do 150 jumps.
And to answer myself: i did the whole AFF with a FF helmet (G4.. my own) from my very first jump... and I'm glad I did it, I cannot tollerate the wind blowing in my nose and mouth, neither today (i tried in the tunnel), the course would have been unnecessary harder without it. My AFFIs at the time understood my reasons and they let me use it.

[riggerrob 558]

A few years back, an accompanied freefall student showed up with a newly-purchased full-face helmet. We asked him if he could see both his release and reserve handles and demonstrate grabbing them. Once he demonstrated being able to see and grab both handles, we took him up for a jump wearing his new helmet. He performed well on the rest of his accompanied freefall jumps and graduated.

The key is being able to watch your fingers wrap around the release and reserve handles.