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A
tandem parachute is in principal the same as a rig that a normal single jumper will use, but has more engineering and twice the size.
After a short briefing on aircraft safety etc, you’ll meet one of our instructors and when it’s time to go up you’ll get onboard the aircraft together
and with the same single parachute.
It takes around 20 minutes after taking off to climb to 10,000 or 12,000 feet which is about 2.2 miles high.
When the aircraft flies overhead of the drop zone we get out in groups with the tandems last to leave.
You walk to the open door, the camera flyer waits hanging on to the outside, (she flies on her own parachute).
The tandem master says, “Head Up”, you look out at the expanse, immense sky beneath you. You leave.
Suddenly the noise of the engines has gone, you are in freefall and you hear silence.
You are free, you feel weightless floating in the soft cushion of air.
As you accelerate the rushing air gets louder and you fall faster until you reach 120mph.
You look around and can hardly take it in - away on the horizon the silky outline of the coast -
the camera flyer in front of you floats effortlessly a couple of feet away.
Every second feels like an eternity then the tandem master pulls the chute at just over a mile high.
Stage two, the sound of rushing air has gone as you are now under the parachute that will take you both back to the ground.
It’s peaceful now it’s just you and the tandem master flying on your own.
You look around the miles and miles of country all those people driving, standing around on the ground, they haven’t got a clue where you have just been.
You glide gracefully down, if you want you can take the controls and steer wherever you want to go.
Finally the instructor takes over and controls the landing.
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