It’s a Bird... Jumping out of a Plane!

What’s it like to jump out of a perfectly good airplane? I’ll never know. Sitting tightly secured inside one is enough of a thrill for me.

For Orange local, Curtis Bird it’s a whole new ballgame, one that’s he’s well and truly getting the hang of and one he has done 35 times to be exact, he is, what he describes as, ‘An expert at being a rookie.’

“I used to jump off the trampoline with an umbrella as a kid and try to find other ways to catch a bit of air, or just go fast. I never really stopped. I was watching Mum do a tandem skydive when I saw a Pilot pushing a plane out of the hangar. Naturally I ran up and asked if I could sit in it. Turns out he was the President of the Orange Aero Club and, by chance, I got to start learning how to fly planes before I could even see over the dash.

I couldn't figure out why anyone would want to jump out of one though. It’s funny how things turn out.”

Curt was 27 when he completed his first ‘jump.’ “It takes a day of ground training and a theory exam to be cleared for your first jump. Most people handle it just fine. Everybody gets the attention they need to make sure they're ready. It's called an Accelerated Free Fall course.

Curt added, “That first time I jumped I've never been so scared. I climbed out on to the step and forgot how to think. Your instructors are right beside you though, and they're amazing!”

“I still get scared doing it now though not so much once you know that you can handle it. Learning to push through that kind of fear can change your life. One day it will stop being scary, then it's time to take it up a level.”

Imagine this, you’re standing on the edge of the plane ledge, Curtis describes, “There's a moment when you fall off the plane, where everything's quiet and you're completely weightless. It's like time stops and you could stay there a while.

Then suddenly the wind is screaming in your ears and you're back in control, that’s when you get on with having some fun!” [Are you guys okay? I’m an anxious wreck here].

“The feeling of the air. It's like a big comfy cushion when you're falling through it so fast. You can move around on it in ways you wouldn't expect! We call that Free flying.

Flying your Parachute Canopy is also heaps of fun. They don't just go straight down. You can really whip them around!”

“When I learned to pack my parachute super early on, and I made an obvious rookie mistake the first time. My canopy was out of control and I would have been injured if I didn't cut away from it. I got flung across the sky like a frisbee, but suddenly my reserve parachute was right there above my head, I was safe and sound before I could worry about getting hurt. What a ride!”

“I jump a handful of times each year. Some people jump hundreds of times a year. It depends where you live and what you've going on around it, but you can jump in Goulburn, Picton, Elderslie, or Moruya and only travel between three and five hours to get there.

The team at iFly in Penrith can get you totally ready to start your AFF. I've never lost my balance in the air, and it's because I practiced for about 10 minutes in the wind tunnel first.

For those who are thinking, this is for me... Curt ensures, “Don't think, just go. You've got this.”