British Parachute Association
Encyclopedia
British Parachute Association (BPA) is the National Governing Body for Sport Parachuting in the United Kingdom
.
within the UK .
The BPA aim is to encourage participation in skydiving
within the UK. Today there are currently 26 affiliated dropzones throughout the country and a membership of more than 30,000.
The association
is funded by membership subscriptions and has an annually elected council of 15 full members which controls all aspects of skydiving on behalf of the Civil Aviation Authority. Unlike many other sports which suffer from fragmented and divided governing bodies, the British Parachute Association represents most UK skydivers and most skydivers within the UK are members of the Association .
The BPA is constituted as a company limited by guarantee.
in the British Parachute Association. These are:
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
.
Overview
The BPA was founded in 1961 to organise, govern and further the advancement of sport parachutingParachuting
Parachuting, also known as skydiving, is the action of exiting an aircraft and returning to earth with the aid of a parachute. It may or may not involve a certain amount of free-fall, a time during which the parachute has not been deployed and the body gradually accelerates to terminal...
within the UK .
The BPA aim is to encourage participation in skydiving
Parachuting
Parachuting, also known as skydiving, is the action of exiting an aircraft and returning to earth with the aid of a parachute. It may or may not involve a certain amount of free-fall, a time during which the parachute has not been deployed and the body gradually accelerates to terminal...
within the UK. Today there are currently 26 affiliated dropzones throughout the country and a membership of more than 30,000.
The association
Voluntary association
A voluntary association or union is a group of individuals who enter into an agreement as volunteers to form a body to accomplish a purpose.Strictly speaking, in many jurisdictions no formalities are necessary to start an association...
is funded by membership subscriptions and has an annually elected council of 15 full members which controls all aspects of skydiving on behalf of the Civil Aviation Authority. Unlike many other sports which suffer from fragmented and divided governing bodies, the British Parachute Association represents most UK skydivers and most skydivers within the UK are members of the Association .
The BPA is constituted as a company limited by guarantee.
BPA Council
The BPA council consists of 15 elected members and the current chairman is Martin Soulsby .BPA Drop Zones
There are currently 26 Affiliated drop zonesDrop zone
A drop zone is a place where parachutists or parachuted supplies land. It can be an area targeted for landing by paratroopers, or a base from which recreational parachutists and skydivers take off in aircraft and land under parachutes...
in the British Parachute Association. These are:
- Black Knights Parachute Centre - CockerhamCockerhamCockerham is a small village and civil parish within the City of Lancaster in Lancashire, England. It is south of Lancaster and north-northwest of Preston...
, LancashireLancashireLancashire is a non-metropolitan county of historic origin in the North West of England. It takes its name from the city of Lancaster, and is sometimes known as the County of Lancaster. Although Lancaster is still considered to be the county town, Lancashire County Council is based in Preston... - British Parachute SchoolsBritish Parachute SchoolsBritish Parachute Schools also known as Langar DZ or Skydive Langar is a BPA affiliated parachuting centre and skydiving drop zone at Langar, Nottinghamshire in the area known as the Vale of Belvoir.-History:...
- RAF LangarRAF LangarRAF Station Langar is a former military airfield on the border of Nottinghamshire and Leicestershire near the village of Langar in England. The airfield is located approximately east-southeast of Radcliffe on Trent; about north-northwest of London...
, NottinghamshireNottinghamshireNottinghamshire is a county in the East Midlands of England, bordering South Yorkshire to the north-west, Lincolnshire to the east, Leicestershire to the south, and Derbyshire to the west... - Cornish Parachute CentreCornish Parachute CentreThe Cornish Parachute Centre is a BPA affiliated parachuting centre and skdiving drop zone at St Agnes, Cornwall.The centre opened in 2006 operating out of Perranporth Airfield. The centre provides student training in the Ram Air Progression System, Accelerated Freefall and Tandem...
- PeranporthSt Agnes, CornwallSt Agnes is a civil parish and a large village on the north coast of Cornwall, United Kingdom. The village is situated approximately five miles north of Redruth and ten miles southwest of Newquay....
, CornwallCornwallCornwall is a unitary authority and ceremonial county of England, within the United Kingdom. It is bordered to the north and west by the Celtic Sea, to the south by the English Channel, and to the east by the county of Devon, over the River Tamar. Cornwall has a population of , and covers an area of... - Headcorn Parachute ClubHeadcorn Parachute ClubHeadcorn Parachute Club is a BPA affiliated parachuting centre and skydiving drop zone at Headcorn, Kent.The drop zone operates two full-time aircraft, a Cessna 208 and a Britten-Norman Islander. The centre provides student training in the static line / Ram Air Progression System, Accelerated...
- Headcorn, KentKentKent is a county in southeast England, and is one of the home counties. It borders East Sussex, Surrey and Greater London and has a defined boundary with Essex in the middle of the Thames Estuary. The ceremonial county boundaries of Kent include the shire county of Kent and the unitary borough of... - Hinton Skydiving CentreHinton Skydiving CentreHinton Skydiving Centre is a BPA affiliated parachuting centre and skydiving drop zone at Hinton-in-the-Hedges, Northamptonshire, England.Aircraft operated include a pac 750-xl. The centre provides student training in Accelerated Freefall and Tandem skydiving. The drop zone has a kit store onsite....
- Hinton-in-the-HedgesHinton-in-the-HedgesHinton-in-the-Hedges is a small village and civil parish in South, Northamptonshire, England, due west of the town of Brackley. West of the village is Hinton-in-the-Hedges Airfield. At the time of the 2001 census, the parish's population was 179 people. In 2010 it had increased to approximately...
, NorthamptonshireNorthamptonshireNorthamptonshire is a landlocked county in the English East Midlands, with a population of 629,676 as at the 2001 census. It has boundaries with the ceremonial counties of Warwickshire to the west, Leicestershire and Rutland to the north, Cambridgeshire to the east, Bedfordshire to the south-east,... - Joint Services Parachute Centre (Army Parachute Association)Joint Services Parachute CentreThe Joint Services Parachute Centre or Army Parachute Association is a BPA affiliated parachuting centre and skydiving drop zone at Netheravon, Wiltshire....
- NetheravonNetheravonNetheravon is a village and civil parish on the River Avon, about north of the town of Amesbury in Wiltshire.-Notable people:The writer Frank Sawyer , although born in Bulford, spent most of his life in Netheravon as river keeper River Avon and died on the banks of the river near the parish church...
, WiltshireWiltshireWiltshire is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is landlocked and borders the counties of Dorset, Somerset, Hampshire, Gloucestershire, Oxfordshire and Berkshire. It contains the unitary authority of Swindon and covers... - London Parachute SchoolLondon Parachute SchoolThe London Parachute School is a BPA affiliated parachuting centre and skydiving drop zone at Watlington, near Lewknor, Oxfordshire .The drop zone operates two piston-powered aircraft, a Cessna 208B Grand Caravan and a Britten-Norman Islander...
- LewknorLewknorLewknor is a village and civil parish south of Thame in Oxfordshire. The civil parish includes the village of Postcombe.-Iron Age and Roman periods:...
, OxfordshireOxfordshireOxfordshire is a county in the South East region of England, bordering on Warwickshire and Northamptonshire , Buckinghamshire , Berkshire , Wiltshire and Gloucestershire .... - North London Skydiving Centre - ChatterisChatterisChatteris is a civil parish and one of four market towns in the Fenland district of Cambridgeshire, England, situated in The Fens between Huntingdon, March and Ely...
, CambridgeshireCambridgeshireCambridgeshire is a county in England, bordering Lincolnshire to the north, Norfolk to the northeast, Suffolk to the east, Essex and Hertfordshire to the south, and Bedfordshire and Northamptonshire to the west... - North West Parachute CentreNorth West Parachute CentreThe North West Parachute Centre is a BPA affiliated parachuting centre and skydiving drop zone at Cark, Cumbria.The drop zone operates a PAC XL750 Turbine aircraft.. The centre provides student training in the Ram Air Progression System, Accelerated Freefall and Tandem skydiving...
- CarkCarkCark is a village in Cumbria, England. It lies on the B5278 road to Haverthwaite and is ½ mile north of Flookburgh, 2 miles southwest of Cartmel and 3 miles west of Grange-over-Sands....
, CumbriaCumbriaCumbria , is a non-metropolitan county in North West England. The county and Cumbria County Council, its local authority, came into existence in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972. Cumbria's largest settlement and county town is Carlisle. It consists of six districts, and in... - Paragon Skydiving Club - ErrolErrol, Perth and KinrossErrol is a village in Perth and Kinross, Scotland about halfway between Dundee and Perth. It is one of the principal settlements of the Carse of Gowrie....
, Perth and KinrossPerth and KinrossPerth and Kinross is one of 32 council areas in Scotland, and a Lieutenancy Area. It borders onto the Aberdeenshire, Angus, Dundee City, Fife, Clackmannanshire, Stirling, Argyll and Bute and Highland council areas. Perth is the administrative centre... - Services Parachute Centre, Ballykelly, County LondonderryCounty LondonderryThe place name Derry is an anglicisation of the old Irish Daire meaning oak-grove or oak-wood. As with the city, its name is subject to the Derry/Londonderry name dispute, with the form Derry preferred by nationalists and Londonderry preferred by unionists...
- Silver Stars Parachute Team (The Royal Logistic Corps) - South CerneySouth CerneySouth Cerney is a village and civil parish in the Cotswold district of Gloucestershire, 3 miles south of Cirencester and close to the border with Wiltshire. It had a population of 3,074 according to the 2001 census...
, GloucestershireGloucestershireGloucestershire is a county in South West England. The county comprises part of the Cotswold Hills, part of the flat fertile valley of the River Severn, and the entire Forest of Dean.... - Skydive Academy (formerly: Peterlee Parachute Centre) - PeterleePeterleePeterlee is a new town in County Durham, England. Founded in 1948, Peterlee town originally mostly housed coal miners and their families.Peterlee has strong economic and community ties with Sunderland and Hartlepool.-Peterlee:...
, Co. DurhamCounty DurhamCounty Durham is a ceremonial county and unitary district in north east England. The county town is Durham. The largest settlement in the ceremonial county is the town of Darlington... - UK Parachuting at Sibson Airfield (Peterborough Parachute Centre) - Wansford, CambridgeshireCambridgeshireCambridgeshire is a county in England, bordering Lincolnshire to the north, Norfolk to the northeast, Suffolk to the east, Essex and Hertfordshire to the south, and Bedfordshire and Northamptonshire to the west...
- Skydive Brid - GrindaleGrindaleGrindale is a village and civil parish in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. It is situated approximately north west of Bridlington town centre.The village has an airstrip, which is particularly popular with skydivers....
, East Riding of YorkshireEast Riding of YorkshireThe East Riding of Yorkshire, or simply East Yorkshire, is a local government district with unitary authority status, and a ceremonial county of England. For ceremonial purposes the county also includes the city of Kingston upon Hull, which is a separate unitary authority... - Skydive Jersey - St. PeterSaint Peter, JerseySaint Peter is one of the twelve parishes of Jersey in the Channel Islands. It is in the west central part of the island. It is the only parish with two separate coastlines, stretching from St. Ouen's Bay in the west to St. Aubin's Bay in the south, and thereby cutting St. Brelade off from other...
, JerseyJerseyJersey, officially the Bailiwick of Jersey is a British Crown Dependency off the coast of Normandy, France. As well as the island of Jersey itself, the bailiwick includes two groups of small islands that are no longer permanently inhabited, the Minquiers and Écréhous, and the Pierres de Lecq and... - Skydive London - WanboroughWanborough, WiltshireWanborough is a village and civil parish in the borough of Swindon, Wiltshire. The village is about southeast of Swindon town centre. The parish includes the hamlet of Foxhill, southeast of the village.-History:...
, WiltshireWiltshireWiltshire is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is landlocked and borders the counties of Dorset, Somerset, Hampshire, Gloucestershire, Oxfordshire and Berkshire. It contains the unitary authority of Swindon and covers... - Skydive St Andrews - GlenrothesGlenrothesGlenrothes is a large town situated in the heart of Fife, in east-central Scotland. It is located approximately from both Edinburgh, which lies to the south and Dundee to the north. The town had an estimated population of 38,750 in 2008, making Glenrothes the third largest settlement in Fife...
, FifeFifeFife is a council area and former county of Scotland. It is situated between the Firth of Tay and the Firth of Forth, with inland boundaries to Perth and Kinross and Clackmannanshire... - Skydive Strathallan - StrathallanStrathallanStrathallan is the strath of the Allan Water in Scotland. The strath stretches north and north-east from Stirling through Bridge of Allan, Dunblane and Blackford to Auchterarder in Perth and Kinross...
, Perth and KinrossPerth and KinrossPerth and Kinross is one of 32 council areas in Scotland, and a Lieutenancy Area. It borders onto the Aberdeenshire, Angus, Dundee City, Fife, Clackmannanshire, Stirling, Argyll and Bute and Highland council areas. Perth is the administrative centre... - Skydive SwanseaSwansea AirportSwansea Airport is an airport located at Fairwood Common on the Gower Peninsula west south-west of Swansea, Wales.-Operations:Swansea Airport has a CAA Ordinary Licence that allows flights for the public transport of passengers or for flying instruction as authorised by the licensee...
- FairwoodFairwood, SwanseaThe electoral ward of Fairwood, City and County of Swansea, Wales, UK consists of some or all of the following areas: Dunvant, Upper Killay, Poundffald and Three Crosses in the parliamentary constituency of Gower....
, SwanseaSwanseaSwansea is a coastal city and county in Wales. Swansea is in the historic county boundaries of Glamorgan. Situated on the sandy South West Wales coast, the county area includes the Gower Peninsula and the Lliw uplands... - Skydive UK - DunkeswellDunkeswell AerodromeDunkeswell Aerodrome is an airfield in East Devon, England. It is located approximately north of the town of Honiton and northeast of Exeter. It is a busy civilian airfield with a mix of light aircraft, microlights and parachuting....
, E. DevonDevonDevon is a large county in southwestern England. The county is sometimes referred to as Devonshire, although the term is rarely used inside the county itself as the county has never been officially "shired", it often indicates a traditional or historical context.The county shares borders with... - Skydive Weston (Royal Air Force Sport Parachute Association) - Weston-on-the-GreenWeston-on-the-GreenWeston-on-the-Green is a village and civil parish about southwest of Bicester.-Manor:Wigod of Wallingford held the manor of Weston at the time of the Norman conquest of England. Wigod died shortly after the conquest, leaving his estates including Weston to his son-in-law, the Norman baron Robert...
, OxfordshireOxfordshireOxfordshire is a county in the South East region of England, bordering on Warwickshire and Northamptonshire , Buckinghamshire , Berkshire , Wiltshire and Gloucestershire .... - Target SkysportsTarget SkysportsTarget Skysports is a BPA affiliated parachuting centre and skydiving drop zone at Hibaldstow, in North Lincolnshire.-History:The airfield is the former RAF Hibaldstow, a former satellite fighter airfield for RAF Kirton in Lindsey and first opened in May 1941. 255 and 253 Squadrons were based their...
- HibaldstowHibaldstowHibaldstow is a village and civil parish on the B1206, south of Brigg and the M180, in North Lincolnshire, England. The deserted medieval village of Gainsthorpe is situated nearby.-History:...
, North LincolnshireNorth LincolnshireNorth Lincolnshire is a unitary authority area in the region of Yorkshire and the Humber in England. For ceremonial purposes it is part of Lincolnshire.... - The Parachute CentreThe Parachute CentreThe Parachute Centre is a BPA affiliated parachuting centre and skydiving drop zone that operates from Tilstock Airfield near Whitchurch, Shropshire.The Airfield used was originally a World War II Airfield, RAF Tilstock....
- TilstockTilstock AirfieldTilstock Airfield is an airfield located in Shropshire, EnglandLocated close north of the village of Prees, it is west of the village of Tilstock, and south of Whitchurch.-Prees Heath Army Camp:...
, ShropshireShropshireShropshire is a county in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes, the county is a NUTS 3 region and is one of four counties or unitary districts that comprise the "Shropshire and Staffordshire" NUTS 2 region. It borders Wales to the west... - UK Parachuting - Old BuckenhamOld BuckenhamOld Buckenham is a village and civil parish in the English county of Norfolk, approximately south-west of Norwich.It covers an area of and had a population of 1,294 in 658 households as of the2001 census...
, NorfolkNorfolkNorfolk is a low-lying county in the East of England. It has borders with Lincolnshire to the west, Cambridgeshire to the west and southwest and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the North Sea coast and to the north-west the county is bordered by The Wash. The county... - Wild Geese Parachute Centre - Movenis & KillykerganGarvaghGarvagh is a village in County Londonderry, Northern Ireland. It is on the banks of the Agivey River, south of Coleraine on the A29 route. In the 2001 Census it had a population of 1,288.-History:...
, County LondonderryCounty LondonderryThe place name Derry is an anglicisation of the old Irish Daire meaning oak-grove or oak-wood. As with the city, its name is subject to the Derry/Londonderry name dispute, with the form Derry preferred by nationalists and Londonderry preferred by unionists...