army paying for skydiving

[npknapt 0]

Sooo I'm in the army and poor, anyone know any ways to get the army to pay for it besides going airborne? I'm sure there are some military jumpers out there. I'm thinking maybe something along the lines of Tuition Assistance. I dunno. Any ideas?

[Krip 2]

Visit the golden knight websight For requirements to tryout and join one of the teams.

Join the army so you can be all you can be
Good luck

One Jump Wonder

[npknapt 0]

Well that's my goal, but you need at least 150 jumps and getting the next 100+ jumps is going to be very expensive.

[Krip 2]

Expensive?

Pack bitch pack

One Jump Wonder

[kenneth21441 0]

Well it would help if you had information on you. But any case when I was in I was at Bragg and we had the GB club (since closed- Due to cuts) and membership was less then 20 dollars and that allowed you to jump from military AC when we got the support. Classes were cheap.
But if you are not stationed on a base that has this then your out of luck.

Why not go Airborne? Heres an ideal get into really good shape, raise your GT score. Then apply for SFAS. If you pass selection you then go on to SFQC and that is a good way of getting to HALO school and other courses as well.

Just a thought.

Afterall its not like you have nothing to lose.

Just my two cents on this area.

Kenneth Potter
FAA Senior Parachute Rigger
Tactical Delivery Instructor (Jeddah, KSA)
FFL Gunsmith

[redlegphi 0]

Yeah, HALO's really the only way the Army's going to give you freefall training. Airborne training is all static line and has very little to do with fun/sport skydiving. Tuition Assistance can only be used for very specific types of schooling, and I'm almost 100% certain that skydiving doesn't qualify. As has already been suggested, I suggest getting a job around the DZ on the weekend (packing, manifest, whatever) to make a little extra cash for jumping. As an enlisted (I assume) soldier in the US Army, you're never really going to make enough to go out and make 20 jumps every weekend. Take a look at your budget, see what things you HAVE to spend money on (family, food, housing), and budget a good chunk of what's left for skydiving.

[redlegphi 0]

Almost forgot, get deployed to Iraq or Afghanistan for a year. It's amazing how much money you can save up when you don't have any place to spend it. Of course, there are certain drawbacks to going to either of those places

[BIGUN 1,053]

First of all, don't confuse Airborne School with skydiving,
Second, don't confuse skydiving with HALO School.
Both are weapons delivery systems.
Skydiving on the other hand is about fun.

No matter which base you're on; go down to the local DZ and hang out for a day. You're bound to find some fellow soldier/skydivers who've managed to figure out a way to pay for skydiving. Being a broke dick soldier ain't no different than most broke dick skydivers. If you have the will, there's a way.

Nobody has time to listen; because they're desperately chasing the need of being heard.

[airdvr 197]

Do what everyone did 30 years ago....max out your credit cards and declare bankruptcy

Please don't dent the planet.

Destinations by Roxanne

[BIGUN 1,053]

The rules regarding that changed in 2005.

Nobody has time to listen; because they're desperately chasing the need of being heard.

[npknapt 0]

Yeah I've looked at just about every option and I think I'm just going to have to end up using my tax refund for jumping. Anyone know any DZ's within 100 miles of augusta, the only one's I've been to are ASC Atlanta and Skydive the farm, sadly all of which are about 200+ miles away.

[riggerrob 558]

Hint: try to wiggle a three or four day pass once or twice a month. That way you can reduce the cost of travel relative to the cost of jump tickets.
The other point is to make as many jumps as you can afford each weekend you visit the DZ.
Try to think of (your long weekends) as skydiving training camps or short courses.

Finally, reduce your beer consumption. Sure beer seems important to young soldiers, but in the long run, you can afford beer or skydiving, but not both.

Not sure if you can stomach it, but snacking on left-over field rations (C-Rations, LURRPS, MRE or whatever the heck they call them these days???) will drastically reduce your food budget, leaving more money for jump tickets.
Young skydivers might give you a hard time about eating hard rations (pun intended), but retired military types (and there are a lot of retired military types on any civilian DZ) will respect you for it.

[riggerrob 558]

Another advantage of serving in war zones is danger pay.
I am not sure what the US Army danger pay is like - for service in war zones - but my brother is currently serving with the Canadian Army in Kandahar.
His danger pay, field pay, foreign service allowance, etc. will almost pay off his mortgage!

[shropshire 0]

I did most of my early jumps on Sport Courses in the RAF (2 weeks a year at Weston-on-the-Green) - so, the Queen paid for them - Thanks Liz

(.)Y(.)
Chivalry is not dead; it only sleeps for want of work to do. - Jerome K Jerome

[redlegphi 0]

$225 per month Hostile Fire Pay, which is like, 132 jumps or so. Plus, the combat zone is tax free, which is good for another couple thousand dollars.
Seriously though, as others have alluded to, it's all about making priorities. If you're single, it's not that hard. Cut back on the other fun shit you do (do you drink? do you smoke? do you dip?) and start funneling that money towards skydiving. You aren't going to be becoming a skygod in one year, but you'll get in a good number of jumps and have some fun. And you can always mooch beer off of other people at the DZ.
As far as finding a DZ, go click on "Dropzones" up on the top of this page, enter your ZIP code where appropriate, and it'll spit out all of the closest DZs for you.

[matthewcline 0]

If you get posted to Bragg, Benning, or Campbell they all have Teams that can be a help to you. They will however want you to work for them. Not just a free ride. All the "free riders' are found out eventually and released, puts ya right back where ya started.

An Instructors first concern is student safety.
So, start being safe, first!!!

[npknapt 0]

Well sadly over 75% of my pay goes to bills and the rest to food and gas. If there was DZ closer then 200 miles away I'd work there in a heart beat, such a great atmosphere at DZs, you get a contact high off of the people lol

[slotperfect 7]

What rank are you? What is your MOS? How long have you been in the Army? How much time do you have left on this enlistment? Is the Army a career for you? How long have you been in your current assignment?

Arrive Safely

John

[npknapt 0]

I'm a SGT about to go to the SSG Board next month, yep the army will be a career for me, I've been in 5 years now as a 98C military intelligence although I guess our new designator is 35N but I've been here at Ft. Gordon for 4 years now.

[slotperfect 7]

Are you single paying out of your pocket to live off-post?

Arrive Safely

John

[npknapt 0]

You nailed it on the head! Ft. Gordon is really really really really anal about living off base, all the barracks on post have to be at 100% before they'll give anyone below E6 BAH so instead of living with 3 other NCO's in a room built for 2 junior enlisted soldiers I decided to move off post outta pocket. Once I pick up that E6 in about 3 months though it will be much much better. (**Nick crosses his fingers that points don't go up**)

[redlegphi 0]

Ah. Yeah, that's an extra several hundred dollars per month. Especially since I think Gordon's in a fairly high cost of living area, yes? So you should have tons of extra dough once you pick up your 6. Just don't get a girlfriend or anything and you're fine.

[npknapt 0]

Cost of living isn't too bad, at least I don't think so. I pay $700 a month for a 2 bedroom 2 bath 800 sq. ft. apartment, starting in february I'll have a roommate too so that will save me a couple hundred dollars. Yeah girlfriends are fucking expensive!! Damn woman lol

[slotperfect 7]

OK, here goes . . . based on the answers to all of your questions:

1) Move back into the barracks. That will allow you to use more of what you make. Living on 25% of your income sounds like self-imposed handcuffs to me.
2) Get yourself into the black financially. Bite the bullet by eating three squares in the DFAC every day, leveraging "free" or inexpensive "on-post" entertainment, consolidating trips for errands, etc. If your Commander will allow you, get a part-time job - you will use your free time to make money instead of spending it.
3) If you own a new car with tall payments, sell it and buy a roller-skate that gets great gas mileage and won't cost as much monthly.
4) Seek a reassignment that is forwarding for your career and takes you closer to a turbine DZ. Ft. Bragg & Raeford is a good example.
5) Determine the total cost of reaching the minimum requirements for USAPT. Save a third of it and buy a block of jump tickets at Chester, SC (the closest turbine DZ to FGGA). Buy a tent and weekend at the DZ if the weather looks jumpable, saving for your next block of tickets. Eat cheap, spend your money on jumps not beer & gear.

If you are clear that this is your goal, and you are serious about it, you will be willing to make the short-term sacrifices in lifestyle that it requires.

Good luck!

Arrive Safely

John

[Krip 2]

What everyone said.

If you want to be a golden knight change the avatar they want you to represent the army and help recruite.

Not sure about current requirements for minimum jump numbers but you also might want to check out the minimum total FF time required.

some places 3500' isn't as $$$ as 13.5'.

The knight's will teach you to jump but attitude is another issue.

A guy from our DZ was a good jumper, but flunked out of GK try outs twice because he had a atttiude.