USPA skydiving members are a tight-knit community. Nowhere else will you find so many people from different walks of life enjoying the same sport. People skydive for many different reasons, and everyone has a story to share. Hear how skydiving changed the lives of everyday people in our series, How Skydiving Changed My Life. Find people like you and meet others who will inevitably change your life. Check out our Facebook page, Twitter or just send us a question if something’s on your mind. Be an active part of our community.

On October 14, USPA member Felix Baumgartner made skydiving history by jumping from 128,100 feet over Roswell, New Mexico. In addition to a new altitude record, he also set world records for longest freefall of 119,846 feet and fastest freefall speed of 833.9 mph (Mach 1.24). USPA Director of Competition James Hayhurst was on site as an official observer. USPA President Jay Stokes, on behalf of 34,600 USPA members worldwide, offered congratulations to Felix and the entire Red Bull Stratos team. Learn more about skydiving records here

US Team member Curt Bartholomew earned gold medals in the speed and zone accuracy canopy piloting events, and a bronze medal in distance. Bartholomew earned the top spot overall and title as world champion.
Meanwhile, teammate Nicholas Batsch set an unofficial distance world record with 154.09 meters, besting his own record set earlier this year at the USPA Canopy Piloting Nationals.
US Team Arizona Airspeed earned gold in 4-way formation skydiving, while in women's 4-way, GK4 took the silver.
For full results, visit the FAI Mondial website.

Each year, roughly a half million people across the U.S. safely and successfully jump out of an airplane for the first time on tandem skydives. For more than three decades, tandem jumping has given millions of people the opportunity to easily experience our life-changing sport while strapped to a certified tandem instructor. Our network of USPA-rated instructors and USPA-affiliated skydiving centers make the safety of the tandem student their top priority. Take the leap, and experience the thrill of a lifetime!

The United States Parachute Association (USPA) is a voluntary membership organization of individuals who enjoy and support the sport of skydiving. The association is incorporated in New York and follows the constitution and by-laws contained in the USPA Governance Manual. The purpose of USPA is three-fold: to promote safe skydiving through training, licensing, and instructor qualification programs; to ensure skydiving’s rightful place on airports and in the airspace system, and to promote competition and record-setting programs. If you'd like to know more about us, click here.

One of the great things about the sport of skydiving is that there’s always a new limit to push, a new boundary to break. To encourage and support skydivers as they reach new heights and to recognize their accomplishments, USPA sanctions state and national skydiving records. Check out the amazing achievements of skydivers across the country—or claim a record of your own—here.

USPA strives to make sure all skydivers who are instructional rating holders are highly skilled and receive thorough training. A high-degree of competence from our instructors ensures that new students feel safe and confident to take that first leap, be it a tandem, AFF, IAD or static-line jump. Proper training and appropriate encouragement is imperative to the continuation of our sport. To find out more about becoming a skydiver, follow the link. To find out more about instructional ratings go here.

USPA membership includes third-party liability insurance. Let's say a skydiver has an off-field landing and damages a neighbor's crops, or a jumper has a tail strike and puts a dent in the aircraft. In either case, the member is covered and won’t have to pay for the damages. USPA doesn't stop there. We also offer  accidental death and dismemberment insurance, and demo insurance. USPA provides you peace of mind.