Head-Down 303 — Fly the diving slot on a head-down big-way

The checklist

1. Plan the jump

1.1

State own diver slot, dive order, approach lane and grips from the organiser's brief.

1.2

Confirm own position in the staggered stack.

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 (divers staggered down the aisle).

2.3

Dirt-dive own exit rotation, dive line, dock and breakoff radial at least twice.

3. Perform

3.1

Exit from the staggered stack on the briefed count, rotating out facing the prop, without contacting the aircraft or another jumper.

3.2

Establish the post-exit picture head-down, high and up jump run of the base, wind on the back, eyes on the base.

3.3

Dive to a point to the side of and below the formation, not at it, arresting the dive before the approach.

3.4

Aim a late dive at the front of the formation, never over the top, so any overshoot carries clear of the build rather than into it.

3.5

Fly the inverse-stadium approach from below, arriving at a point below the base with the same grips as a float.

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

Adjust own dive line to stay clear of converging diver trajectories while holding the slot.

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 diver slot against video, classifying each approach as clean, corrected or aborted.

5.2

Identify own dive-line faults (diving at the formation, overshoot, late power-up) and their correction.

5.3

Write the jump up naming the unit and slot (e.g. "HD303, diver slot, wave-1 breakoff"), the results and the next objective.

Criteria in bold are safety-critical: they protect the flyer and everyone else in the formation. A diver who drives over the top or can’t stop the dive puts the whole build at risk. 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 only, on organised head-down big-ways, 6-way minimum (recommended), with some jumps at 10-way or larger.
• A real group is needed. No criterion in parts 3 or 4 can be shown on a jump on your own or in the tunnel.
• Exit altitude 10,000 ft minimum (recommended), higher for big-ways.
• Outside video is the most useful diver 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 (two recommended, set to the flyer’s wave), 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.
• Each criterion is marked Satisfactory or Not Yet Satisfactory. Finishing the course is recorded as a milestone.
• As a guide, it takes about 8 organised head-down big-ways in a diver slot, 6-way or larger, some at 10-way or larger, across at least two events or days.
• The tunnel can drill the dock. The dive needs the sky.
• If you already dive on big-ways, bring your logbook, video and a word from an organiser, and fly one jump assessed against the checklist.

Coaching priorities

Safety first, then fun, then learning. Hold the bold criteria to the standard above: a diver never drives over the top to save a dock. Debrief a broken-off dive or a safe, low deployment as the right decision. Sort approaches as clean, corrected or aborted without blame, and end each debrief on something that went well, with one focus for the next jump. Teach the leg-strap bungee check with the carving-collision case behind it.

• The Freefly Project’s coaching doctrine: diver exit positioning, the dive to a point beside and below, the inverse-stadium approach, diver weight and stopping range, and aiming a late dive at the front.
• IMPACT, a film directed by Patrick Dunne (2022), and Mark Lucchiari’s first-person account in Skydive Mag: the Byron Bay late-diver collision.
• Australian Skydiver Magazine, issue 71: the 9-way carving collision, the C6/C7 injury and the leg-strap finding.
• APF Freefly and Angles Guide (APF006): the airspace check before deployment, and deploying when directly above another jumper (§3.2–3.3).
• APF Operational Regulations (V01-2026), as jurisdictional context.

Regulations change, so each rule is given as context for where you jump. Follow your federation and your drop zone.

• Australia (APF). Head-down jumps of more than 3 parachutists need a Freefly Crest, Head-Down (OR 9.2.2). Jumps of 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 mandatory on every freefly descent (OR 9.2.3).
• The assessor in Australia is an APF Freefly Coach. Elsewhere, the national or drop zone equivalent.

Acronym key. APF, Australian Parachute Federation. OR, the APF Operational Regulations.