Jump Pilot Manual (PDF which includes written assessments)
APF Operational Regulations and Regulatory Schedules
Jump Pilot E-News
Letter from DOTARS Guidance regarding Aviation Security Identification Cards (ASICs) and Parachutists
How do I get an APF Jump Pilot Authorisation?
Providing you meet the requirements of the APF Operational Regulations you must undertake a Jump Pilot Authorisation Course and successfully complete written and practical examinations, with an APF approved Examiner.
- The first step is to obtain an APF Jump Pilot Associate Membership, this type of membership is free. You can obtain your new membership or renew a previous APF membership by submitting an M1 application form. The M1 Membership Form is located HERE. Once completed email to apf@apf.com.au for processing.
- Within 1 business day of creating your membership, you will receive an email from the APF with login details to the APF Website. If you do not see the email, please check your junk/spam email folder before contacting the APF. The email provides all the relevant details as to how to login to the APF website.
- As a member you can now apply for your Jump Pilot Authorisation. Login to the APF Website and go to the Jump Pilot Authorisation Application page to lodge your application. Once successfully lodged, you will receive an email providing you with links to all the APF study material needed along with a link to the JPA Written Exam.
If you have not already spoken with the Club or examiner you are going to undertake all of your assessments with, please do so now. Your examiner may have specific requirements or processes they wish you to follow before completing the online written exam.
- As your application progresses you will receive emails during the process informing you when your application has been signed off by your examiner, when your authorisation has been issued and for any other critical points during the process. You can follow the progress of your application by going to the Members/Applications/My Applications page when logged into the website. You can “View” your original application, check the current status of your application through the “History” or “Diagram” views. Simply click on the related hyperlinks for your application to see each of these items. You will also be able to view the results of your written Jump Pilot Exam through this page by clicking on the “Jump Pilot Exam Results” link.
- Once your authorisation has been processed, you will be able to obtain your unique APF Jump Pilot Authorisation number via the APF Member Lookup which can be located under the Members menu or via the following link APF Member Lookup.
Can I apply via a paper based application and written exam?
Of course. If you have difficulty getting access to a computer or have poor internet connectivity, you can always undertake a paper based application and examination process. Simply contact your local APF Club or selected examiner to arrange to undertake a paper based application and examination.
Please be aware that as a paper based process, it may take more time to process and issue you with your Jump Pilot Authorisation.
How long is the Authorisation Valid for?
The JPA is valid for one year expires at the end of the coming financial year (i.e. the next June 30th).
Revalidation of Jump Pilot Authorisation
Existing JPA holders intending to revalidate their authorisation can log in to the website and submit a Jump Pilot Renewal application (J2). The application will be available within 3 months of the expiry of your authorisation and can be found under the Members/Forms & Applications menu.
Please remember you will also need to renew your membership separately to maintain your JPA.
Jump Pilot Associate Membership
The 'Associate Membership' will now align with the APF Members Financial Year (July 1st to June 30th) with the JPA holder required to renew their membership each financial year AT NO CHARGE. Membership renewal reminders will be provided to all JPA holders in accordance with current membership renewal reminder notification practices (electronically), and it is therefore imperative that all Pilots keep their contact details updated with the APF National Office.
Member lookup
As all Jump Pilots have been added to the APF Database, their qualifications can be checked via the APF website Member Lookup Facility by typing Surname and D.O.B. Existing APF Members who have now obtained a JPA will have their new qualification noted as an endorsement. These Members will be required to keep their APF Membership current in order to hold a valid sporting license as the Pilot Associate Membership does not include Jumping, Voting or Insurance privileges.
Jump Pilots are able to access the below information through the member look up on the APF database:
- APF Number
- Membership Expiration Date
- Jump Pilot Authorisation Number
- Jump Pilot Expiration Date
- Medical Expiration Date
- Passport Photo (if provided)
Jump Pilot Authorisation Examiners
A list of approved Jump Pilot Examiners (JPE's) is available on this website.
Prospective Jump Pilot Examiners (JPE's) should lodge their expression of interest by emailing the National Aviation Officer (NAO) at apf@apf.com.au with a brief history of their experience as a Pilot including approximate number of total hours, total hours flying Parachutists, the types of aircraft involved and any other relevant information. Successful Examiners will be advised and their details posted on the APF website.
Where can I find the Jump Pilot Authorisation Application?
The online Jump Pilot Authorisation Application (J1) is only available once logged into the APF Website. Once logged in you can find the application under the Members/Forms & Applications menu.
If you do not have a login, you will need to apply for a Pilot Associate Membership.
Where can I find the Online Jump Pilot Authorisation Written Exam?
The written examination is only available to members who have a login to the APF Website. You can only complete the exam once, so please ensure you have completed the necessary study and spoken to your JPA Examiner prior to attempting the exam. You can access the exam via the following link: Jump Pilot Authorisation Examination
As an APF Jump Pilot Examiner, Senior Pilot or Chief Instructor, where do I find my pilots application for approval?
Once logged into the APF Website, you can access ALL applications awaiting examiner, senior pilot or chief instructor approval via the Members/Applications/My Work menu. On first going to the page, all applications awaiting approval will be listed. You can use a keyword search to search for the applicants’ name or APF number to filter the list.
Once you have found your pilots application, you can click on the “Process” link for the application to approve the application. You can also progressively save changes to the application, if you do not have all available details at one time.
You can add comments to the application by clicking on the “Comments” link. These comments can be seen by others and as such, please be professional and courteous with any comments you wish to make on an application.
You can check the current status of an application through the “History” or “Diagram” views. Simply click on the related hyperlinks to see each of these items.
Once an application has been approved by you or another person, the application will no longer appear in the list of items for review.
As an APF Jump Pilot Examiner, Senior Pilot or Chief Instructor, where do I find my pilots written exam for review?
You can access your pilots’ exam in one of two ways.
- The first is to have the student login to the APF website and access their exam results through the My Applications page and click on the Jump Pilot Exam Results link.
This will list pilots’ results along with a list of the questions, the answer given, their score and the correct answers, making it easy to discuss those questions with the pilot that they answered incorrectly.
- If you are not with the pilot you can review the pilots exam through My Work page. Once logged into the APF Website, you can go to the pilots application using the My work page via the Members/Applications/My Work menu. Locate your pilots name/application and click on the "Process" hyperlink to access the pilots application.
Within the application page, you will see a “Search & Review Exam Results” link, click on this link to be taken to the Content Organiser Reports which will allow you to find your pilots exam.
When in the Content Organiser, it is recommended that you set Report to “Score Summary” and you need to select the Package Name of “APF Jump Pilot Authorization”. Once you have set this values, click the “Preview” button at the bottom of the page.
This will bring up a list of results, from which you can see the date that your pilot completed the exam.
Once you know the date the pilot undertook their exam, change the Report field to “Score Detail” and enter the date the pilot submitted the exam in the Submitted Min Date and Submitted Max Date fields. This will display the pilots answers and enable you to determine and provide feedback on any incorrect answers.
Nominated Senior Pilot
As of June 30th 2010, all APF Training Organisations must have a nominated Senior Pilot. This person must also be the holder of a JPA and is the nominated responsible person overseeing Aircraft Operations and Jump Pilot Operations.
Balloon pilot’s information for dropping parachutists
Balloon jumps are a novelty for many parachutists, and balloon pilots can expect to be approached by parachutists who wish to jump from their balloon. The following notes are for your guidance.
Balloon pilot qualifications
From CASA Specifications for parachute descents in relation to pilot qualifications. In order to drop parachutists the balloon pilot must be either the holder of at least a commercial pilot (balloon) license or a Private Pilot (Balloon) Certificate issued by the ABF, and have not less than 75 hours aeronautical experience as pilot in command of balloons.
Parachutist qualifications
All parachutist operations require a Drop Zone Safety Officer (DZSO) to be present, either on the ground or in the air. It is the DZSO’s responsibility to ensure that the parachutists are suitably qualified, equipped and briefed for their jump. The minimum qualification for this position is an APF “D” license (requiring over 200 jumps, among other things). Where all the jumpers hold a minimum of at least a “B” license (requiring 50 or more jumps) there are no other special requirements.
Any operation involving student parachutists (note that tandem passengers are students) or “A” license holders also requires the authority of an APF Chief Instructor.
If the landing area involves a public gathering or is within 600 m of a built-up area then the jump is a “display jump” and also requires the involvement and approval of an APF Licensed Display Organiser (LDO).
Briefings
The DZSO should brief the parachutists thoroughly on all parachuting aspects of the exercise. Most parachutists are quite familiar with fixed winged aircraft and the procedures to be followed in and around them. The balloon pilot should brief the parachutists as he/she would for any balloon passenger, and about any special requirements relating to climbing onto and exiting the basket.
Heights
APF rules require that the parachutists have their parachutes fully open by 2000 feet AGL. Given the lack of airspeed as the parachutist leaves the basket a minimum exit height should include 1000 feet above planned opening height to allow the parachutist to gain stability and airspeed. This may be less for very experienced jumpers. Tandem jumps must exit at a minimum altitude of 7500ft AGL and have the parachute open at a minimum of 4000ft AGL.
Since the balloon will usually be in descent for the exit of the parachutist, some additional height will probably be necessary. Brief the parachutist that the balloon will be in descent at the rate of about 300 - 600 ft per minute, as the parachutist may feel that (unlike jumps they have made out of aircraft), there is no hurry to exit
Parachutists may exit at any height above this minimum, and will often want as much height as possible, to allow them the maximum time to carry out freefall maneuvers.
Exits
Exits from a balloon basket will not generally be a problem to the jumpers, but the pilot should check on the parachutists’ plans before take off, to ensure that they will not cause any balloon control problems. Pilot and parachutists together should determine if the exits are one at a time or simultaneous, and how they are distributed around the basket.
Drop Zone / Target site
Regular jumps from aircraft allow jumpers to be quite precise about the exit point to plan their landings on a known drop zone. This is often not possible from a balloon so jumpers need to be comprehensively briefed on possible landing options and reminded of the associated hazards (especially power-lines). The DZSO should ensure that this is done.
Jumps into a built-up area need particular attention in this respect. Although there are no particular rules about it, one would expect that only highly experienced parachutists would be making parachute jumps from a balloon over built up areas. This would be classified as a display jump.
Where should I go if I have further questions?
If you have further questions in relation to how to obtain your APF Jump Pilot Authorisation, we recommend that in the first instance you contact the club or examiner you intend to undertake your assessment with. If they are unable to assist, then please contact the APF National Office and we will assist with you enquiry.