Until September 2006 I had not previously visited Lillo and in the spirit of objectiveness I should say that I had only heard good things. Good weather, great aircraft, good vibe and great mentors in the disciplines of freefly and canopy flying. Skydivers get on with things. We work through problems and help each other out. So, when I arrived at Lillo to find that they had no swimming pool for our non jump friends and no restaurant or bar where you could get something reasonable to eat I was happy enough to work through the difficulties and make alternative arrangements. The dropzone is currently devoid of conventional toilets and chemical toilets are provided. No hand washing facilities are avaible though. Modern toilets are on the site but due to a legal difficulty it was explained to me by the DZ staff that these were off limits and that no one could use them. Though the toilets provided are pretty grim if you’re all in the same situation you just get on with it and make the best of things. However, I became incensed when I discovered that the staff and friends of the dropzone had a magic key stored at manifest that gave them access to the closed toilet block for their personal use. I should point out that the use was deliberately kept low key by the staff so that customers would not be aware. It is quite something for a dropzone to take your money and allow you to sit in their plane but at the same time behave in a way that indicates you’re not good enough to sit on their toilets! Kind of lets you know what level of respect the DZ operators have for their paying customers. A clear cut case of them and us and one that skydiving can do without. Elsewhere on this forum you may read about difficulties with tickets when it comes to refunds on those you have not used. I will not go into detail here but make sure if you are buying blocks of jumps that you are absolutely clear about what will happen if you wish to return some. The dropzones procedures are not made clear by staff at the time of purchase and the dropzones computer system is unable to offer fairness and good will. My other points relate to safety. Everyone has different canopy skills but in my opinion the main landing area is only a little larger than what in the UK is referred to as a ‘demo.’ If you’re at the stage where you’re beginning to explore performance landings take care as there are very few outs if you get it wrong. Your options are a metal fence, a swoop pond or a hanger! If you’re an experienced jumper then it’s your call if you get on a load that the DZ is sending up in questionable weather. However I did witness a load including students take off when a storm front was coming in. The dropzone was playing the game of averages and this time they got unstuck as the result was a student who could not descend for some 25minutes due to winds and updraft and who landed some 3-4km’s away from the DZ. He was OK in the end but this story could have been very different due to poor decisions by the DZ operators. Finally, I thought I’d help everyone out by qualifying the contents of the DZ’s website so that you all know what is currently available. Unfortunately the DZ is still advertising facilities which have simply not been there for months and they should be honest and explain this to potential customers. 1. The drop zone has a large area with a hanger used for packing, as well as team rooms, parachute school and videos, manifest, office, skydivers shop, the rigging loft - Yes 2. Cafeteria - No 3. Barbecue -No 4. Showers and toilets – No I won’t personally be returning to Lillo. If you’re thinking of going then wait until they have sorted out appropriate facilities and get the DZ to confirm what they actually have on site as the website is wholly inaccurate.
