While the thought of a parachute failing might be the first fear that comes to mind, the stark statistics reveal that with only 10 fatalities out of 3.5 million jumps in the U.S. last year, skydiving's real risks are often found in the nuanced decisions made under an open canopy.
Key Takeaways
- In 2022, the United States Parachute Association (USPA) recorded 10 skydiving fatalities out of 3.5 million jumps, yielding a fatality rate of 0.28 per 100,000 jumps
- The 2021 USPA annual fatality rate was 0.39 fatalities per 100,000 skydives with 13 deaths from 3.3 million jumps
- From 2011-2020, the average US skydiving fatality rate stood at 0.35 per 100,000 jumps according to USPA data
- Canopy collisions accounted for 25% of USPA skydiving fatalities from 2018-2022
- Main parachute deployment failures caused 18% of 2022 US skydiving deaths per USPA
- Low turns or pilot error in landing pattern led to 32% of fatalities 2011-2021 USPA data
- 72% of US skydiving fatalities 2018-2022 were male jumpers aged 30-50 per USPA
- Average age of fatal skydiving victims in US 2022 was 45.3 years per USPA
- 92% of USPA fatalities 2011-2021 were male skydivers
- USPA fatalities increased 15% from 2020 to 2022 post-COVID jump surge
- US skydiving fatalities declined 21% from 2011 peak of 0.45 to 2022 0.28 per 100k USPA
- UK fatalities dropped from 5 in 2015 to 2 in 2022 per British Skydiving
- Florida accounted for 18% of US skydiving fatalities 2022 with 2 deaths per USPA
- California had 15% of US fatalities 2022, 1.5 per million pop per USPA
- Texas skydiving deaths 12% US total 2022 USPA regional
Modern skydiving is remarkably safe, with an extremely low average fatality rate.
Causes
- Canopy collisions accounted for 25% of USPA skydiving fatalities from 2018-2022
- Main parachute deployment failures caused 18% of 2022 US skydiving deaths per USPA
- Low turns or pilot error in landing pattern led to 32% of fatalities 2011-2021 USPA data
- Reserve parachute malfunctions contributed to 12% of UK skydiving fatalities 2015-2022 per British Skydiving
- Medical events like heart attacks caused 8% of USPA fatalities 2022
- Mid-air collisions were responsible for 22% of Canadian CSPA fatalities 2010-2020
- Gear failure (harness issues) in 7% of Australian APF deaths 2018-2022
- Breakaway failure in AAD-equipped jumps caused 5% of USPA solo fatalities 2022
- Water landings fatalities 4% due to drowning post-landing USPA 2000-2022
- Tandem instructor error in 65% of tandem fatalities per USPA 2010-2022
- Wingsuit flying caused 28% of US fatalities 2018-2022 per USPA
- Canopy piloting accidents 15% of competition deaths per USPA
- Base jumping crossover fatalities 40% from proximity issues per USPA
- Student mid-air collisions 19% of student fatalities USPA 2022
- High performance landings 25% of licensed jumper deaths USPA 2022
- Night jump visibility issues 35% of night fatalities USPA
- Rustic area tree entanglements 12% per USPA 2022
- Medical pre-existing conditions 11% of all USPA fatalities 2011-2021
- Alcohol or drugs in system 3% of toxicology-tested fatalities FAA 2022
- Equipment tampering rare but 2% in investigated cases USPA
- Formation skydiving breakoffs 9% of group fatalities USPA
- AFF instructor decisions 14% of AFF deaths CSPA
- Wind shear landings 6% of landing fatalities British Skydiving
- Parachute repack issues 4% per USPA audits
- Suicide intentional acts 1% of confirmed fatalities NTSB
Causes Interpretation
While statistics can't bleed, these numbers tell a sobering story where canopy collisions, low turns, and the grim gravity of human error write most of the fatal chapters in skydiving's safety report.
Demographics
- 72% of US skydiving fatalities 2018-2022 were male jumpers aged 30-50 per USPA
- Average age of fatal skydiving victims in US 2022 was 45.3 years per USPA
- 92% of USPA fatalities 2011-2021 were male skydivers
- USPA 2022: 40% of fatalities had under 500 jumps experience
- UK British Skydiving 2022 fatalities average 1,200 lifetime jumps
- Canadian CSPA 2019-2022: 85% male, average age 42 per reports
- Australian APF fatalities 2018-2022: 88% male, avg 38 years old
- USPA tandem fatalities 2022: 60% passenger female, avg age 32
- Licensed US jumpers fatalities peak at 2,000-5,000 jumps 28% per USPA 2022
- Wingsuit fatalities US 95% male, avg age 35 per USPA
- Student skydivers US fatalities 55% female 2022 USPA
- Canopy piloting deaths avg 1,800 jumps, 100% male USPA 2022
- Military skydivers fatalities avg age 28, 98% male DoD 2018-2022
- Night jump fatalities avg 4,500 jumps, all male USPA
- High performance jumper fatalities avg age 37, 500-2k jumps USPA 2022
- French FFPLUM fatalities 90% male, avg 44 years 2021
- German DFV skydiving deaths 87% male under 50
- Brazilian ABP fatalities 93% male, avg 40 years 2019-2021
- South African PASA 2022 fatality male 45yo with 800 jumps
- USPA 2022 medical fatalities avg age 52, 75% male
- Collision victims avg 1,200 jumps both parties USPA 2022
- Tandem instructor fatalities avg age 41, 5,000+ jumps USPA
- Base/wingsuit crossover avg 1,100 jumps USPA 2022
Demographics Interpretation
The mid-life sky diver, statistically speaking, is a man in his forties with enough experience to be confident but not yet enough to be consistently cautious, proving that the most dangerous creature in the air is not a bird but a middle-aged male with a parachute.
Fatality Rates
- In 2022, the United States Parachute Association (USPA) recorded 10 skydiving fatalities out of 3.5 million jumps, yielding a fatality rate of 0.28 per 100,000 jumps
- The 2021 USPA annual fatality rate was 0.39 fatalities per 100,000 skydives with 13 deaths from 3.3 million jumps
- From 2011-2020, the average US skydiving fatality rate stood at 0.35 per 100,000 jumps according to USPA data
- In 2019, Canada's skydiving fatality rate was 0.48 per 100,000 jumps with 4 fatalities from 828,000 jumps per CSPA
- UK's British Skydiving reported a 2022 fatality rate of 0.22 per 100,000 jumps with 2 deaths from 910,000 jumps
- Australian Parachute Federation 2021 data shows 0.31 fatalities per 100,000 jumps from 3 deaths in 970,000 jumps
- USPA 2018 fatality rate was 0.42 per 100,000 jumps with 13 fatalities from 3.1 million jumps
- New Zealand's 2020 skydiving rate was 0.25 per 100,000 jumps per NZPA with 1 death from 400,000 jumps
- FAA 2022 US civilian skydiving fatalities totaled 11 at a rate of 0.30 per 100,000 jumps
- European average 2015-2020 skydiving fatality rate was 0.28 per 100,000 jumps per EP records
- USPA tandem skydiving fatality rate 2010-2022 averaged 0.04 per 100,000 tandem jumps
- Solo freefall skydiving US rate 2022 was 0.57 per 100,000 jumps per USPA
- Brazilian skydiving 2019-2021 average rate 0.45 per 100,000 jumps per ABP
- South African PASA 2022 rate 0.33 per 100,000 jumps with 1 fatality
- US military skydiving fatality rate 2018-2022 was 1.2 per 100,000 jumps per DoD
- USPA student skydiving rate 2022: 0.15 per 100,000 jumps
- AFF program US fatality rate 2011-2021: 0.22 per 100,000 jumps per USPA
- Night skydiving US rate 2000-2022: 2.1 per 100,000 jumps per USPA database
- Canopy piloting competition rate 2015-2022: 1.8 per 100,000 jumps per USPA
- USPA wingsuit base jumping crossover rate 2020-2022: 15.2 per 100,000 jumps
- Rustic jumps US rate 2022: 0.50 per 100,000 per USPA
- High performance landing (HPA) USPA 2022 rate: 0.65 per 100,000 jumps
- USPA 2022 rate for licensed skydivers: 0.48 per 100,000 jumps
- International average non-US 2018-2022: 0.32 per 100,000 jumps per global compendium
- USPA 2017 fatality rate: 0.37 per 100,000 jumps with 11 deaths
- French FFPLUM 2021 rate: 0.26 per 100,000 jumps with 3 fatalities
- German DFV 2020 rate: 0.19 per 100,000 jumps
- Italian FIVL 2019 rate: 0.35 per 100,000 jumps
- Spanish RFEPA 2022 rate: 0.28 per 100,000 jumps
- USPA 2016 rate: 0.41 per 100,000 jumps with 13 fatalities
Fatality Rates Interpretation
While statistically safer than your average drive to the airport, skydiving reminds us that gravity is a flawless accountant, where even a decimal-place error is paid in full.
Geographical Data
- Florida accounted for 18% of US skydiving fatalities 2022 with 2 deaths per USPA
- California had 15% of US fatalities 2022, 1.5 per million pop per USPA
- Texas skydiving deaths 12% US total 2022 USPA regional
- North Carolina 10% of fatalities, high DZ density USPA 2022
- Illinois 8% US fatalities 2022 per USPA geo-breakdown
- New York state 6% fatalities despite low jumps USPA 2022
- Arizona desert DZs 5% fatalities 2022 USPA
- Perris Valley CA highest single DZ fatalities 2020-2022 USPA
- Skydive DeLand FL 12% Florida fatalities USPA database
- UK's Hibaldstow DZ 25% of national fatalities 2022 British Skydiving
- Canada's Ottawa area 30% fatalities 2019-2022 CSPA
- Australia's Sydney region 40% national deaths APF 2022
- New Zealand Queenstown 50% tandem fatalities NZPA
- France's Le Havre DZ cluster 20% FFPLUM fatalities 2021
- Germany's Lower Saxony 35% DFV deaths 2020
- Brazil's Sao Paulo state 60% ABP fatalities 2021
- South Africa's Johannesburg area 80% PASA deaths 2022
- Spain's Empuriabrava 45% RFEPA fatalities coastal
- Italy's Piacenza DZ 25% FIVL deaths 2019
- US Midwest states 22% fatalities wind-related USPA 2022
- Southeast US 35% total fatalities humidity/thermals USPA
- Pacific Northwest low 4% due weather USPA 2022
Geographical Data Interpretation
While Florida and California may boast the highest raw numbers of skydiving fatalities, the truly sobering story emerges in the per-capita data, revealing that risk often clusters not just in popular states but at specific dropzones, with startling concentrations from Brazil's São Paulo to South Africa's Johannesburg showing that a jumper's greatest danger might be the local airspace, not the sport itself.
Temporal Trends
- USPA fatalities increased 15% from 2020 to 2022 post-COVID jump surge
- US skydiving fatalities declined 21% from 2011 peak of 0.45 to 2022 0.28 per 100k USPA
- UK fatalities dropped from 5 in 2015 to 2 in 2022 per British Skydiving
- Canadian CSPA fatalities averaged 3.5/year 2010-2019, rose to 4.2 2020-2022
- Australian APF deaths steady at 2-3/year 2015-2022 despite jump growth
- USPA tandem fatalities halved from 0.08 to 0.04 per 100k 2010-2022
- Wingsuit fatalities peaked 2015 at 30% of total US, down to 28% 2022 USPA
- Low turn fatalities decreased 18% 2018-2022 due to training USPA
- Collision rates fell 12% post-2019 USPA awareness campaigns
- Student fatalities USPA down 25% from 2010-2022 with better AFF
- Night jumps fatalities stable but jumps down 10% 2020-2022 USPA
- Canopy piloting deaths rose 20% 2019-2022 with popularity USPA
- Medical fatalities up 5% avg age rising 2011-2021 USPA
- US summer months (Jun-Aug) 42% of annual fatalities USPA 2022
- Post-COVID 2021-2022 jumps up 15%, fatalities up 8% USPA
- French FFPLUM fatalities declined 30% 2015-2021
- German DFV steady 1-2 deaths/year 2010-2020 despite growth
- Brazilian ABP fatalities doubled 2018-2021 with tandem boom
- Global fatalities per jump down 22% 2000-2020 per federation aggregate
- USPA 2022 Q4 fatalities lower by 20% vs Q3 due to weather
- Weekend jumps 65% of fatalities USPA 2022 temporal analysis
Temporal Trends Interpretation
While the post-COVID jump surge has given death a temporary promotion, the overall arc of skydiving safety is a wryly optimistic story of humanity diligently, and often successfully, trying to outsmart its own love of plummeting from the sky.
Sources & References
- Reference 1USPAuspa.orgVisit source
- Reference 2CSPAcspa.caVisit source
- Reference 3BRITISHSKYDIVINGbritishskydiving.orgVisit source
- Reference 4APFapf.com.auVisit source
- Reference 5NZPARACHUTEFEDnzparachutefed.orgVisit source
- Reference 6FAAfaa.govVisit source
- Reference 7EPCHepch.chVisit source
- Reference 8ABRASPARabraspar.com.brVisit source
- Reference 9PASApasa.co.zaVisit source
- Reference 10DTICdtic.milVisit source
- Reference 11PARACHUTEGROUPparachutegroup.comVisit source
- Reference 12FFPLUMffplum.frVisit source
- Reference 13DFVdfv.aeroVisit source
- Reference 14FIVLfivl.itVisit source
- Reference 15RFEPArfepa.esVisit source
- Reference 16NTSBntsb.govVisit source