skydiving

sky·dive

S0458600 (skī′dīv′)intr.v. sky·dived, sky·div·ing, sky·dives To jump and fall freely from an airplane, often performing various maneuvers, before deploying a parachute.

sky′div′er n.sky′div′ing n.

skydiving

(ˈskaɪˌdaɪvɪŋ) n (Extreme Sports) the sport of parachute jumping, in which participants perform manoeuvres before opening the parachute and attempt to land accurately

sky′div`ing

or sky′ div`ing,

n. the sport of jumping from an airplane and descending in free fall for a considerable distance before opening a parachute. [1955–60] sky′ div`er, n.

Thesaurus

Noun

skydiving - performing acrobatics in free fall before pulling the ripcord of a parachuteparachuting, jump - descent with a parachute; "he had done a lot of parachuting in the army"

Translations

parachutisme

skydiving

skydiving,

sport of descending partly by parachute from an airplane or similar craft. Engaged in for both recreational and competitive purposes, skydiving involves three phases of activity: the free fall, the descent with open parachute, and the landing. In competitive skydiving, participants are judged according to their style in free fall and their accuracy in landing near a designated point. During the descent, divers can control the accuracy of their landing by manipulating the open parachute as a type of sail; skilled parachutists with good equipment can travel horizontally up to 10 mi (16 km) per hr during a normal fall. For reasons of safety, skydivers are required to open their parachutes at about 2,200 ft (670 m). Skydiving became a competitive sport after World War II. In 1951 the Fédération Aéronautique Internationale (founded 1905), the world organizing body for most aeronautic sports, sponsored the first world championship of skydiving. In the United States the U.S. Parachute Association (USPA; founded 1957) sponsors an annual national championship. By the early 21st cent. interest in traditional skydiving waned as membership in the USPA fell. At the same time, however, interest in canopy piloting, or swooping, grew. Begun in the late 1990s, canopy piloting is the only kind of skydiving in which most of its movements can be seen from the ground. Swooping, which offers greater speed and danger than traditional skydiving, consists of maneuvers performed close to the earth or water, sometimes just inches away, and is enabled by jumping at lower altitudes and the use of smaller, more agile parachutes.

skydiving

the sport of parachute jumping, in which participants perform manoeuvres before opening the parachute and attempt to land accurately
www.fai.org/parachuting

skydiving

sky·dive

skydiving

sky′div`ing

or sky′ div`ing,

skydiving

skydiving,

skydiving

skydiving

Words related to skydiving

noun performing acrobatics in free fall before pulling the ripcord of a parachute

Related Words