Bad U.S. Congress bill could ground Hoke County skydiving businesses. A NC senator can help
Each year, approximately half a million people in the U.S. take the adventure of a lifetime and try skydiving. North Carolina is home to seven drop zones, each hosting thousands of these tandem skydives per year.
Tandem skydiving — where you’re attached to an experienced skydiving instructor for your jump — has maintained an excellent safety rate in the state.
Yet, local skydiving centers are under attack.
Legislation that is unnecessary and potentially damaging to skydiving is working its way through U.S. Congress right now. The proposed Air Tour and Sport Parachuting “Safety” Act, currently tucked away within the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Reauthorization Bill, threatens North Carolina’s skydiving industry.
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It incorrectly calls into question the state’s long-standing safety record under the current FAA regulations and could negatively impact our economy, if passed.
The proposed legislation, despite its name, fails to provide any tangible safety improvements for both skydivers and the general public. Rather, this attempt adds costly and burdensome maintenance requirements to skydiving aircraft nationwide. In fact, the FAA itself has not supported this proposal.
If passed, the cost of taking a jump would drastically increase, forcing many drop zones out of business entirely. Smaller drop zones, many of which have been family-owned and operated for generations, would be hit particularly hard.
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It’s not just the one-time thrill-seekers who would lose out; instructors, pilots, support staff and local economies all benefit from these businesses. These centers are at the heart of our state’s skydiving culture.
What is even more concerning is the economic fallout that could result from the implementation of this legislation. Throughout the month, Skydive Paraclete XP in Raeford is hosting 600 skydivers from around the world at the 2023 U.S. Parachute Association (USPA) National Championships.
This event is bringing together the top skydivers from around the world at one of the premier drop zones in the country for a month full of intense and rewarding competition. This brings a great positive economic impact on the city and surrounding area.
Devastating regulation could take all that away for next year’s Nationals competition and also potentially have ripple effects on Raeford-based Sun Path Products Inc., which is one of the world’s largest skydiving equipment manufacturers not only for sport skydiving but also supports our armed services and their parachute operational needs.
Fortunately, there’s hope. Sen. Ted Budd of North Carolina has stepped up to strike Section 315 in the bill. Congress recently returned from recess and will begin working on several issues in the FAA Reauthorization bill on which they could not agree, giving skydivers, general aviation supporters and people like you the opportunity to take action and contact your legislators and urge them to support Senator Budd's motion to strike section 315.
For many of us, skydiving is an activity we tuck safely away in a bucket list. Or something we leave to reckless adrenaline junkies. But the skydiving community in North Carolina is a tight-knit family bound together by a shared love for the thrill of freefall and the joy of soaring 14,000 feet above the state.
By opposing this legislation, together, we can ensure that the skies over North Carolina remain open for generations of skydivers to come.
Albert Berchtold is the executive director of the U.S. Parachute Association (USPA), a nonprofit dedicated to the promotion of safe skydiving nationwide, establishing strict safety standards, training policies and programs at more than 200 USPA-affiliated skydiving schools and centers throughout the country, including in North Carolina.
This article originally appeared on The Fayetteville Observer: ‘Safety’ Act in Congress will hurt skydiving businesses in Hoke, nationwide
