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HU201 Coach
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Head Up · Relative · The brief

Head-Up 201

Fly head-up in a 2-way

Flying head up relative to one other person: level, slot, dock.

What this unit covers

Covers flying head-up relative to one other flyer: exits, approach, levels, slots, docks and breakoff in a 2-way. Applies to flyers competent in HU 102 (movement and transitions). Environment: sky, with tunnel drills as preparation. Supervision: with a coach.
The coach flies as the in-air reference at first, then flies passive as the skills consolidate.

What comes before it

Screen 2 · What to watch

What to watch

The same short list the flyer sees on their card, in the same words.

3.3
Match the partner's fall rate, holding level (head-height tolerance) for 3 seconds.

Can you match another flyer’s fall rate and hold level with them for three seconds?

3.4
Approach from ~5 m into the slot without overshoot, holding slot 3 seconds before docking.

Can you close the last five metres into a slot without overshooting, and hold the slot for three seconds before you dock?

3.5
Take a hand dock without destabilising the partner.

Can you take a hand dock without destabilising the other flyer?

3.8 Safety critical
Execute the recovery position immediately on any loss of control, re-approaching only when stable.

If you lose control on an approach, do you recover first and only go back in once you are stable?

Screen 3 · What blocks a sign-off

What blocks a sign-off

A safety-critical criterion marked not yet stops the sign-off, however good the rest of the flying was. There is no averaging across this line, and no trading a good jump against it.

Safety-critical criteria on the short list

3.8
Execute the recovery position immediately on any loss of control, re-approaching only when stable.

If you lose control on an approach, do you recover first and only go back in once you are stable?

Everything this unit says about breakoff and deployment

1.3
State breakoff (guides: head-up work 5,500 ft minimum; for freefly groups generally 5,000 ft up to a 4-way, most modern jumpers plan 5,500 ft for any freefly group and will generally not accept 4,500 ft) and deployment altitudes, and the lost-partner plan.
4.1
Initiate breakoff at the briefed altitude (within −0/+300 ft).
4.3
Deploy at the planned altitude after clearing airspace.

Recording a sign-off says what you saw on one jump. It is not a rating, it is not a permission to jump, and it does not replace anything the drop zone requires.

Screen 4 · Conditions

Conditions

Where the evidence is allowed to come from, and how much of it there needs to be.

Assessment conditions

Sky jumps from a recommended 10,000 ft minimum. Video is required for a valid assessment (coach-flown or helmet-mounted, candidate identifiable). Required equipment: visual altimeter, functioning audible, freefly-suitable gear. Conditions within the candidate's cleared limits.
Assessor: a freefly coach current in HU coaching, using the published FFP-HU201 checklist (Satisfactory / Not Yet Satisfactory per criterion).

Performance evidence

Ability evidenced across at least 6 coached 2-way jumps, across at least two different days/conditions, including at least 2 consecutive jumps meeting all criteria without coach assistance, within a recommended 6-month currency window.
Tunnel time may substitute for up to two of the skill-development jumps, but not the assessment jumps.

Screen 5 · Debrief

Debrief

Safety first, then fun, then learning. In that order, every time.

Coaching priorities

Deliver in the project's priority order: Safety → Fun → Learning. Hold bold safety criteria to the standard above. Design the session to be enjoyable: participants choose this expensive hobby, and enjoyment sustains both the student and the sport. End debriefs on a win with one improvement focus.

One fault, one correction

Ask for their read before you give yours. Then leave them with one fault and one correction, in their words if you can get them. Six points is six points forgotten by the next load.

A jump marked not yet is a jump to re-fly, not a failure, and saying so out loud is part of the debrief.

Record this jump

Your notes for this unit

Saved on this device only. Nothing is sent anywhere, there is nowhere for it to go, and no account is involved. They will be here next time you open this card.

This card is a summary. The full Head-Up 201 unit carries the reasoning, the sources and everything left off here. All briefing cards.