Head-Down 302 — Fly the float slot on a head-down big-way

The checklist

1. Plan the jump

1.1

State own float slot, approach lane, grips and key responses from the organiser's brief.

1.2

Confirm the exit stack order and own staged drop-off timing (floats released across "ready" / "set" / "and" as briefed).

1.3

Confirm own currency and qualifications against the organiser's entry criteria and the local entry requirements.

1.4

State own breakoff wave, altitude, radial and deployment altitude (the organiser owns the breakoff design, see FFP-HD401).

2. Prepare

2.1

Complete a freefly-specific gear check (handles, hand-deploy pouch, riser covers, closing loop, helmet, audible set to own wave and functioning).

2.2

Walk the exit stack in the mock-up in the briefed order.

2.3

Dirt-dive own exit, drop-off, approach lane, dock and breakoff radial at least twice.

3. Perform

3.1

Exit in the assigned outside-float position and drop off on own staged count, low and behind the base, without contacting the aircraft or another jumper.

3.2

Rotate from a de-powered back-fly attitude to head-down, powering up once the sight picture to the base is set.

3.3

Fly the inverse-stadium approach from low and behind, arriving at a point below the base.

3.4

Keep the base in the blue throughout the approach, sky behind the base at all times, aborting below and re-setting if the base sinks toward the green.

3.5

Hold static arm geometry: fingers below wrists, wrists below elbows, elbows below shoulders.

3.6

Make the final move from 2–3 head-levels below, flying the whole body to the grip without reaching.

3.7

Sting, dock or break in with the briefed grips, gentle pressure, without destabilising the formation.

3.8

Present for the next dock: arm wide of the leg burble, hand in a fist, eyes into the group.

3.9

Recover or abort on any instability or lost slot, back out below and clear, re-approaching only when stable; never recover over the top.

4. Complete

4.1

Initiate breakoff with own wave at the briefed altitude (within −0/+300 ft), regardless of formation completeness.

4.2

Turn onto the assigned radial and track the fan-out arc, shading away from jump run if briefed.

4.3

Deploy at own wave's briefed altitude after checking airspace (barrel roll only if smooth; if directly above another jumper, deploy rather than out-track).

4.4

Fly the briefed canopy separation and landing order.

5. Review

5.1

Debrief own float slot against video, classifying each approach as clean, corrected or aborted.

5.2

Identify any overfloating indicator (base toward the green, reaching, drive over the top) and its correction.

5.3

Write the jump up naming the unit and slot (e.g. "HD302, float slot, wave-2 breakoff"), the results and the next objective.

Criteria in bold are safety-critical. On a big-way an overfloat, a breakoff error or a deployment error puts the whole load at risk, as well as the flyer. A coach should not sign off the course while a bold criterion is Not Yet Satisfactory, however good the rest of the flying. Outside a course they are strongly recommended practice. Regulation stays with your federation and your drop zone.

Assessment conditions

• Sky jumps only, on organised head-down big-ways of 6-way or larger (recommended), with some at 10-way or larger.
• A real group is needed. No criterion in sections 3 (Perform) or 4 (Complete) can be met on a jump on your own or in the tunnel.
• Exit altitude of 10,000 ft or higher (recommended), and higher for big-ways.
• Outside video is the most useful float debrief. Where none is practical, the organiser’s observation and other jumpers’ footage can carry the debrief, with the flyer identifiable.
• Equipment: a visual altimeter, a working audible set to the flyer’s wave (two recommended), an AAD (highly recommended), and freefly-suitable gear.
• The assessor is an experienced head-down big-way organiser, or a freefly coach current in the discipline, using this checklist. In Australia, an APF Freefly Coach, and elsewhere the national or drop zone equivalent.
• Each criterion is marked Satisfactory or Not Yet Satisfactory, and the finished course is recorded as a milestone.
• As a guide, it takes around 8 organised head-down big-ways in the float slot, 6-way or larger with some at 10-way or larger, across at least two events or days.
• Tunnel time sharpens the dock, and the group jumps happen in the sky.
• If you already float on big-ways, bring your logbook, video and a word from an organiser, and fly one challenge jump against the checklist.

Coaching priorities

Safety first, then fun, then learning. Hold the bold criteria to the standard above. Never trade an overfloat for a completed dock. Debrief an early back-out as a correct decision, even on a jump the whole load built. Classify approaches without blame, and end each debrief on something that went well, with one focus for the next jump.

• APF Freefly and Angles Guide (APF006, August 2023), §3.2–3.3: the 10,000 ft freefly guide, the barrel-roll airspace check, and deploying when directly above another jumper.
• The Freefly Project’s head-down big-way coaching: float positioning, staged drop-offs, the inverse-stadium approach, base in the blue, the final move from 2–3 head-levels below, static arm geometry and the docking vocabulary.
• APF Operational Regulations (V01-2026), as jurisdictional context.

Regulations change, so each rule is given with its document, as context for where you jump.

• Australia (APF). Head-down jumps of more than 3 parachutists need an FFC-HD (OR 9.2.2(c)). More than 10 also need a Star Crest (OR 9.1.3).
• Separate at least 1,000 ft above deployment altitude (OR 9.1.4). A functioning audible altimeter is required on every freefly descent (OR 9.2.3).
• Elsewhere, participation gates for big-ways are set by the national body and the drop zone.

Acronym key. APF, Australian Parachute Federation. OR, the APF Operational Regulations. FFC-HD, Freefly Crest, Head-Down.