British Skydiving is the national governing body for skydiving in the United Kingdom.

Overview

British Skydiving was founded in 1960 to organise, govern and further the advancement of sport parachuting within the UK. British Skydiving aims to encourage participation in

skydiving Parachuting, including also skydiving, is a method of transiting from a high point in the atmosphere to the surface of Earth with the aid of gravity, involving the control of speed during the descent using a parachute or parachutes. For ...

within the UK. In 2016 there were nearly 6,000 full members and around 60,000 students, and around 30 affiliated training organisations. The association is funded by membership subscriptions and has an annually elected council which controls all aspects of skydiving on behalf of the

Civil Aviation Authority A civil aviation authority (CAA) is a national or supranational statutory authority that oversees the regulation of civil aviation, including the maintenance of an aircraft register. Role Due to the inherent dangers in the use of flight vehicles, ...

. Unlike many other sports which suffer from fragmented and divided governing bodies, the British Parachute Association represents most UK skydivers, and most skydivers within the UK are members of the Association.The British Parachute Association
British Skydiving is constituted as a company limited by guarantee. The association's headquarters are at

Glen Parva Glen Parva is a civil parish in the Blaby district of Leicestershire, England with a population of over 17,000. The population of the civil parish (including Eyres Monsell) was measured at 17,189 in the 2011 census. To the north it runs into ...

, Leicestershire. Following the 50th anniversary of British Skydiving, an archive project was established to record and collect the history of the sport in the UK and of the Association. Association name changed to British Skydiving 27/11/2019 to bring awareness of the sport to a greater audience

Council

British Skydiving council consists of ten elected members, together with two independent directors from outside the sport. The council is chaired by Craig Poxon.

Drop zones

In 2015 there were 29 affiliated

drop zones A drop zone (DZ) is a place where parachutists or parachuted supplies land. It can be an area targeted for landing by paratroopers, or a base from which recreational parachutists and skydivers take off in aircraft and land under parachutes. In ...

within British Skydiving. These include: *Black Knights Parachute Centre –

Cockerham Cockerham is a small village and civil parish within the City of Lancaster district in Lancashire, England. It is south of Lancaster and north-northwest of Preston. Lying on the River Cocker, at the estuary of the River Lune, the parish ha ...

, Lancashire *

British Parachute Schools British Parachute Schools also known as Langar DZ or Skydive Langar is a BPA affiliated parachuting centre and skydiving drop zone at Langar, Nottinghamshire in the area known as the Vale of Belvoir. History Langar airfield was originally a ...

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RAF Langar Royal Air Force Station Langar or more simply RAF Langar is a former Royal Air Force station located near the village of Langar, Nottinghamshire, England. The airfield is located approximately east-southeast of Radcliffe on Trent and about nor ...

, Nottinghamshire * Cornish Parachute Centre – Peranporth, Cornwall *GoSkydive –

Old Sarum Airfield Old Sarum Airfield is a grass strip airfield north-north-east of Salisbury, Wiltshire, England. The adjacent areas are a mix of vacant land, residential and industrial sites. Residential areas are to the south and east, occupying the old air ...

, Salisbury * Hinton Skydiving Centre –

Hinton-in-the-Hedges Hinton-in-the-Hedges is a small village and civil parish in West Northamptonshire, England, due west of the town of Brackley. West of the village is Hinton-in-the-Hedges Airfield. At the time of the 2001 census, the parish's population was 179 ...

, Northamptonshire * Joint Services Parachute Centre (Army Parachute Association) –

Netheravon Netheravon is a village and civil parish on the River Avon and A345 road, about north of the town of Amesbury in Wiltshire, South West England. It is within Salisbury Plain. The village is on the right (west) bank of the Avon, opposite Fit ...

, Wiltshire * London Parachute School –

Lewknor Lewknor is a village and civil parish about south of Thame in Oxfordshire.The civil parish includes the villages of Postcombe and South Weston. The 2011 Census recorded the parish's population as 663. Early history Iron Age and Roman era Tw ...

, Oxfordshire *North London Skydiving Centre –

Chatteris Chatteris is a market town and civil parish in the Fenland district of Cambridgeshire, England, situated in The Fens between Huntingdon, March and Ely. The town is in the North East Cambridgeshire parliamentary constituency. The parish of C ...

, Cambridgeshire *

North West Parachute Centre The North West Parachute Centre is a BPA affiliated parachuting centre and skydiving drop zone at Cark, Cumbria. The drop zone operates a PAC XL750 Turbine aircraft. The centre provides student training in the Ram Air Progression System, Acceler ...

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Cark Cark (sometimes Cark in Cartmel) is a village in Cumbria, England. It lies on the B5278 road to Haverthwaite (and to the A590 road) and is ½ mile north of Flookburgh, 2 miles southwest of Cartmel and 3 miles west of Grange-over-Sands. It is ...

, Cumbria *Paragon Skydiving Club – Errol, Perth and Kinross *Skydive Headcorn –

Headcorn Aerodrome Headcorn Aerodrome is a private airfield in Kent, England. The airfield is located south of Maidstone; about southeast of London. Opened in 1943 during the Second World War, it was named RAF Lashenden. It became a prototype for the tempora ...

, Headcorn, Ashford, Kent *Services Parachute Centre, Ballykelly, County Londonderry *Silver Stars Parachute Team (The Royal Logistic Corps) –

South Cerney South Cerney is a village and civil parish in the Cotswold district of Gloucestershire, 3 miles south of Cirencester and close to the border with Wiltshire. It had a population of 3,074 according to the 2001 census, increasing to 3,464 at the ...

, Gloucestershire *Skyhigh Skydiving''(formerly: Peterlee Parachute Centre)'' –

Peterlee Peterlee is a town in County Durham, England. It lies between Sunderland to the north, Hartlepool to the south, the Durham Coast to the east and Durham to the west. It gained town status in 1948 under the New Towns Act 1946. The act also create ...

, Co. Durham *UK Parachuting at Sibson Airfield (Peterborough Parachute Centre) –

Wansford Wansford may refer to the following places in England: * Wansford, Cambridgeshire ** Wansford railway station, headquarters of the Nene Valley Railway * Wansford, East Riding of Yorkshire {{Geodis ...

, Cambridgeshire *Skydive GB Parachute Club, Bridlington –

Grindale Grindale is a village and civil parish in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. It is situated approximately north-west of Bridlington town centre. The village has an airstrip, which is used predominantly for skydiving. It is currently opera ...

, East Riding of Yorkshire *Skydive Jersey – St. Peter, Jersey *Skydive St Andrews –

Glenrothes Glenrothes (; , ; sco, Glenrothes; gd, Gleann Rathais) is a town situated in the heart of Fife, in east-central Scotland. It is about north of Edinburgh and south of Dundee. The town had a population of 39,277 in the 2011 census, making i ...

, Fife *Skydive St George –

Darlington Darlington is a market town in the Borough of Darlington, County Durham, England. The River Skerne flows through the town; it is a tributary of the River Tees. The Tees itself flows south of the town. In the 19th century, Darlington underwen ...

, Durham * Skydive Strathallan –

Strathallan Strathallan is the strath of the Allan Water in Scotland. The strath stretches north and north-east from Stirling through Bridge of Allan, Dunblane and Blackford to Auchterarder in Perth and Kinross. Strathallan is also the name for one of the ...

, Perth and Kinross * Skydive Swansea – Fairwood, Swansea *Skydive UK –

Dunkeswell Dunkeswell is a village and civil parish in East Devon, England, located about north of the town of Honiton. At the 2001 census, the parish had a population of 1,553, reducing to 1,361 at the 2011 Census. There is an electoral ward with the ...

, Devon *Skydive Weston (Royal Air Force Sport Parachute Association) – Weston-on-the-Green, Oxfordshire * Skydive Hibaldstow –

Hibaldstow Hibaldstow is a village and civil parish in North Lincolnshire, England. The population of the civil parish at the 2011 census was 2,433. It is situated on the B1206 road, south from Brigg and the M180. The site of the deserted medieval vill ...

, North Lincolnshire * The Parachute Centre – Tilstock, Shropshire *UK Parachuting –

Beccles Beccles ( ) is a market town and civil parish in the English county of Suffolk.OS Explorer Map OL40: The Broads: (1:25 000) : . The town is shown on the milestone as from London via the A145 and A12 roads, north-east of London as the crow fli ...

, Suffolk *Wild Geese Parachute Centre – Movenis & Killykergan, County Londonderry

References

External links

* {{Authority control Parachuting in the United Kingdom Parachuting organizations

Parachute A parachute is a device used to slow the motion of an object through an atmosphere by creating drag or, in a ram-air parachute, aerodynamic lift. A major application is to support people, for recreation or as a safety device for aviators, who ...

Organisations based in Leicestershire Sports organizations established in 1961 1961 establishments in the United Kingdom