This is Utah with Deb. The mistake that has (and continues) is that Tandem is considered a freefall instrutional tool. It is not. Tandem does not teach freefall skills well, but is the finest tool we have to teach the most dangerous aspect of this sport, which is using your ram-air glider to a safe landing. It is the best, most profitable, safest intro to this sport that we will ever have. The evolution of instructing sport parachuting has not been easy. The last ten+ years of convolution says that we are on the cusp of getting it right. If we completely separate tandem ratings from intructional ratings, we can get closer to being on the same page. In the real world, the manufacturers set the standard for creating TM's and their Examiners. There is a desire of the manufacturers to remove themselves from the over sight of the TM's and move it to the USPA. All well and good. The rub is the manufacturers must maintain the integrity and training of their examiners. There is also a problem with this removal of Course Directors to I/Es. This is our suggestion... Coach is the first requirement to enter into the world of instructing, and is a good course. It is a good evolution from the BIC. Combine the SL rating with the IAD rating making it 1 rating. If you do this, it gives you the opportunity to issue only 1 USPA I/E rating that would cover teaching Coach, SL/IAD and AFF. Set the standards as high as you like for the I/E. It's about teaching Skydiving and Parachuting. Get rid of the TI rating all together. You already have a TM being created by the manufacturer. Once that rating is issued, it would be maintained by the USPA and shown as TM on the USPA card. Get rid of the USPA Tandem I/E and have the manufacturers change what they call their Examiners. Instead of Tandem Instructor/Examiners call them Tandem Master/Examiners. Once created, It would be shown as TM/E on the card. This separation would clear a lot of the confusion that exists now. To qualify: Coach: B-license SL/IAD, AFF: Coach + C-license + 50 logged coach jumps. USPA I/E: All ratings available including 1 TM/E rating, Senior Rigger, and whatever else the USPA requires. Tandem: Coach + D-license + 100 logged coach or AFF jumps + manufacturers other requirements. KISS y'all... utahsteve (sorry for the book)
