Rating Corner: The Importance of the New Tandem BSR
A small minority of tandem instructors have questions—and, let’s face it, are a bit skeptical—about the new Basic Safety Requirement mandating the reattachment of the lower-lateral connections before landing. The USPA Board did not take this decision lightly. It spent a considerable time researching the matter, and the data and other information gleaned from real-world incidents showed that this change was essential.
Truth be told, the industry was already moving in this direction. Roughly 75% of all drop zones currently require instructors to reattach the lower-lateral connections for landing, and more than 80% of active tandem instructors have signed an agreement during their rating courses to reattach them immediately after making landing adjustments. The mounting pressure from USPA Examiners and Safety and Training Advisors—those most directly responsible for ensuring the integrity of instructional standards—made it clear that this policy needed to be elevated to an enforceable requirement. That meant placing it among the few tandem-specific Basic Safety Requirements in the Skydiver’s Information Manual.
Canopy Collisions and Cutaways
At busy drop zones, boogies and high-traffic events, tandem pairs under canopy often cross paths with other jumpers who may not anticipate their movements. Some key concerns include:
- Maneuvering near solo students in holding areas
- Wingsuit flyers aiming to enter landing patterns from long spots
- Increased congestion in landing areas during boogies, often involving jumpers unaccustomed to navigating higher canopy traffic
- Sport jumpers unexpectedly descending into the airspace due to poor timing or parallel jump runs
When canopy collisions occur, quick decisions are critical. The industry’s widely accepted decision altitude for tandem skydivers is 3,000 feet, with 1,500 feet as the last chance for a tandem cutaway in the event of a collision. Below that, a reserve deployment is the only option. However, when the lowers are disconnected, the ability to perform an effective cutaway is compromised.
There have been fatal outcomes when reserve entanglements occurred due tandem students being unsecured. There have also been serious non-fatal incidents. In one instance, a student’s foot became entangled with the reserve lines after a cutaway, leaving the student suspended upside down by their foot when the reserve inflated. Fortunately, they were freed, and the pair landed safely. In another collision incident, a sport jumper’s lines went between the tandem pair and opened the top connection gates, and the lines became trapped in the B-12 connectors. This pair also survived.
Landing-Related Head and Neck Injuries
Landing issues are the top cause of tandem-related injuries worldwide. The Australian Parachute Federation, whose members completed 129,000 tandem jumps in 2024, states that over the past seven years, 73% of serious tandem injuries—including broken bones, dislocations and fatalities—occurred during landing. Contributing factors include:
- passenger error (e.g., failing to lift legs)—36%
- weather-related issues (e.g., wind lull, turbulence)—17%
- instructor error (e.g., poor technique or decision-making)—28%
Other international data mirrors this trend. Canadian and British skydiving organizations report similar breakdowns in contributing factors, commonly citing student leg position and uneven terrain.
Even a seemingly routine landing can turn into a forward tumble when the student’s leg catches on the ground. When the lower laterals are unsecured, this can force the instructor’s and student’s heads and necks together, causing serious head, neck and spinal injuries. This is known as the “hinge effect,” in which the upper attachment points act as a fulcrum when the instructor’s body rotates over the student’s. In several cases, this has led to the instructor or student sustaining paraplegia or quadriplegia. From the 2024 USPA incident reports alone, four involved unsecured lowers: Two students sustained spinal cord injuries—one resulting in paraplegia—and two instructors suffered broken legs due to impact forces amplified by unconnected harness systems.
Aligning with Manufacturer SOPs
Many international skydiving organizations, including those in Australia, Canada, New Zealand, Israel, the United Kingdom, Norway and South Africa, require reattaching the lowers in accordance with the manufacturer’s standard operating procedures. Although some believe that reattaching the lowers may increase the chance of injury, none of these countries has seen an increase in injuries to either students or instructors due to having the lowers reattached to the container. A review of international incident data found no correlation between increased instructor injuries and mandatory lower-lateral-connection policies. For example, countries with strict compliance, such as Australia and New Zealand, reported consistent instructor injury rates before and after enforcement began.
United Parachute Technologies, a leading tandem manufacturer, spends an exorbitant amount in legal fees defending tandem-related cases. Without adherence to manufacturer standards, liability shifts to the drop zone, individual instructors and USPA. Ensuring compliance protects both the organization and its members from costly and unnecessary legal battles.
This is not a new standard. Since 2013, the UPT manual has stated that the lower connectors must be reattached to the instructor’s D-rings. And since 2018, 80% of all current tandem instructors have signed documentation acknowledging that compliance with these standard operating procedures is a condition of holding a rating.
Ultimately, this BSR prioritizes safety, reduces legal exposure and aligns U.S. tandem skydiving practices with international standards. While most drop zones and instructors have already adopted this policy as standard procedure, a small but vocal minority has resisted the change, most visibly on social media. Still, the USPA Board of Directors stayed focused on the broader needs of the community and, after more than a decade of tension surrounding this issue, have crafted a clear and enforceable BSR to support it. With that, we can close the book on this long-standing debate and move forward with consistency and confidence.
Angie Aragon D-30898
Tandem, AFF and Coach Examiner; USPA National Director