Skydiving Hand Signals: What To Know

Key Takeaways

Skydiving hand signals are used to communicate during freefall because wind speeds make verbal communication impossible. While tandem students won’t need to memorize skydive hand signals, understanding a few common ones can help you better understand what’s happening during your jump. This article covers the skydiving signals you may see on a tandem skydive, how tandem instructors communicate with students, and how hand signals are used in solo jump training. Whether you’re preparing for your first skydive or simply curious about the sport, understanding skydiving hand signals provides a behind-the-scenes look at how skydivers communicate in the air.

If you’ve been thinking about your first skydive, you may have started wondering how skydivers communicate in freefall. After all, we’re falling through the air at approximately 120 mph. It’s loud!

Can you talk while skydiving? Contrary to what you see in movies, skydivers aren’t having conversations during freefall. The wind noise is simply too overwhelming. Think of it like driving down the freeway with all the windows down, except even louder.

So, how do skydivers communicate? The answer is skydive hand signals. Skydivers use visual signals to communicate important information when speaking isn’t an option. While you won’t need to memorize a long list of hand signals for your tandem skydive, understanding a few of the most common ones can help you feel more comfortable and give you a better understanding of what’s happening during your jump.

Why Skydivers Use Hand Signals

Freefall is fast and loud. Instructors and skydivers need a way to communicate information instantly, and skydiving signals provide a simple solution.

Most skydive hand signals are fairly universal. While there may be small variations between dropzones, the core signals are widely recognized throughout the sport. The United States Parachute Association (USPA) even publishes standard hand signals to help maintain consistency between instructors and students.

Freefall Hand Signals You May See

While hand signals are used extensively when teaching students to skydive on their own, there are a few common signals that may apply to your tandem skydive as well.

Arch

Arching is one of the most important body positions in skydiving because it helps create stability in freefall. 

When we talk about arching, we want our hips to be the lowest part of our body. This allows the airflow to move smoothly around us and helps keep us stable as we fall through the sky.

Before your tandem skydive, your instructor will teach you the proper body position and have you practice it on the ground. 

Check Altitude

Skydivers wear altimeters that tell us how high we are above the ground. 

Altitude awareness is one of the most important skills in skydiving. Throughout every skydive, instructors are continuously checking altitude and making decisions based on where they are in the sky.

As a tandem student, your instructor is responsible for monitoring altitude and deploying the parachute. However, you’ll likely notice them checking their altimeter frequently throughout freefall.

Pull

The pull signal is one of the most recognizable hand signals in skydiving.

While tandem students won’t be deploying their own parachutes, students learning to skydive use this signal as a reminder that it’s time to deploy. No matter how you see it presented, pull means pull now.

Tandem Skydiving Communication

Communication on a tandem skydive is often more physical than signal-based because you and your instructor are attached to one another.

Before the jump, your instructor will teach you the proper exit position and freefall body position. During exit and the initial portion of freefall, you’ll keep your hands securely on your harness.

Once everything is stable, your instructor will give you a tap to let you know it’s okay to release your hands and enjoy the sensation of freefall. At that point, you can spread your arms out, take in the view, and enjoy the experience.

Once the parachute opens, communication becomes much easier. Wind speeds decrease significantly, the noise level drops, and normal conversation becomes possible. Your instructor can point out landmarks, answer questions, and provide verbal instructions for landing.

If You Decide To Learn To Skydive

Most skydiving hand signals are designed for students learning to skydive on their own.

In an Accelerated FreeFall Program, or AFF, instructors use hand signals throughout freefall to correct body position, provide feedback, and communicate important information. Some of the most common AFF skydiving hand signals include:

Legs Out

Most AFF students have likely seen the legs out hand signal at some point in their student progression. Students often bring their legs in without realizing it, which can affect stability and movement. This signal reminds the student to return to a stronger body position.

Check Arms

This signal tells the student to evaluate their arm position and make any necessary adjustments. Small changes in arm position can have a significant impact on stability in freefall.

Thumbs Up

A thumbs-up means good job. If an instructor gives you a correction and you respond appropriately, you’ll often receive a thumbs-up to let you know you’ve fixed the issue.

Relax

Believe it or not, this is one of the most important signals in skydiving. New skydivers naturally become tense, but relaxing helps students fly more efficiently and maintain better body position.

The Wave-Off

While this isn’t one of the hand signals shown above, the wave-off is something every skydiver performs before deploying their parachute. Why do skydivers give a wave-off signal? It tells other skydivers in the area that a parachute is about to open and helps maintain safe separation in the sky.

To perform a wave-off, a skydiver makes large sweeping motions with their arms before reaching for their pilot chute. It’s one of the most universal signals in skydiving, used by students and experienced jumpers alike.

The goal of skydiving hand signals is simple: help students make small adjustments quickly so they can develop good habits and become more stable in freefall.

Experience it for Yourself 

Now that you know how skydivers communicate in freefall, you’re already ahead of most people before their first jump. While hand signals play an important role in skydiving, they’re something that quickly starts to make sense once you see them in action.

At Skydive Key West, every tandem skydive begins with a thorough briefing, and your instructor will guide you through the rest. When you’re ready, we’d love to introduce you to the sport. Book your tandem skydive today. Blue skies!