Dynamic 401 — Fly advanced dynamic

Application

Covers flying advanced dynamic sky jumps, “tunnel in the sky” flying in deliberately small groups. 2–3 flyers is the sweet spot and 4 the practical maximum for advanced work. Jumps beyond 6 flyers are the territory of dedicated competition teams that work up to a bigger-way dynamic jump incrementally over many practice jumps, not weekend jumpers, and are outside this unit.

Where an angle jump follows a leader, an advanced dynamic jump attacks the centre: every flyer works to keep the group close and tight, converging on a shared point rather than chasing a tail. Four patterns organise the flying:

• Front attack with eagle, flyers converge head-on with no lateral offset.

  • The higher flyer passes over through belly, the lower under through back (a VFS eagle), with constant mutual visual contact.
  • A leader may signal over or under, but the decision is made fast and committed early.

• Front attack with pass-by, flyers converge offset, pass each other, then mirror a transition (through back or belly) to finish face-to-face, generally flowing into a carve.

  • The vertical move can also be a stall, creating a second pass-by or stalling into a line.

• Vertical mirroring, flyers side by side; the leader initiates a vertical manoeuvre (layout or stall) and the second mirrors it.

• Lead and follow, tunnel-style dynamic lines, where the leader cuts a line and the second follows directly behind.

The advanced skill set inside these patterns: eagles, head-up→head-down transitions through the belly, front and back layouts, head-up and head-down carving, and head-up and head-down vertical stalls.

The more advanced the jump, the closer it flies to pure vertical. A single pass-through covers less than half the ground of a straight angle, two pass-throughs less than a third, and a jump chaining four or five pass-throughs resembles eagles and tunnel layouts, a column of air only slightly larger than a purely vertical jump.

Jumps are planned, briefed and debriefed in the FAI Dynamic vocabulary (snakes S1–S6, verticals V1–V8, mixers M1–M9, carving, eagles), the only officially defined language for this flying (FAI/ISC Dynamic Competition Rules 2025, Annexes A–B).

Jump difficulty is graded and briefed by transition count, 0 / 1–3 / 4+ (USPA SIM 5-10 skill matrix, 2026 numbering; §6-12 in the 2023-24 SIM), the only national-body rubric that grades movement jumps this way.

Competition pathways, indoor Dynamic 2-way/4-way, 2-way Mixed Formation Skydiving (MFS), Vertical Formation Skydiving (VFS) and the APF Angle Flying dive pool, are context for continued development, not unit requirements.

Applies to flyers competent in dynamic lines (DY 301).

Environment: sky; this style of flying realistically requires substantial dynamic tunnel work and practised leading and following before it transfers, tunnel time is preparation and calibration only.

Supervision/scaffold: flown with experienced dynamic partners, scaffold stage: flying a briefed pattern in another flyer’s plan → briefing and flying full pattern sequences → co-designing the jump. This is a Mastery-tier unit: there is no sign-off. Completion is a milestone recognising advanced dynamic capability, it is not a permission, and it does not authorise any jump.

The challenge jump

A single jump to work towards, the capstone of the whole curriculum, not a required assessment item. It chains every discipline the project teaches into one flight, so a flyer who can plan, brief, fly and break off this jump cleanly with a strong small group has demonstrated the full competency set in one descent.

It is a milestone to aim at, not a permission or a sign-off: flying it grants nothing, authorises nothing, and gates nothing. Fly it only inside an organised, experienced small group (2–4-way, a 2-way is a complete challenge, a 4-way the practical ceiling), planned and briefed to the least experienced participant, with the standard altitude guides and the breakoff flown per the head-down-first doctrine below.

Like every jump in this unit, it is designed under Safety → Fun → Learning: the point is the achievement and the flying, and standing the jump down when the group, the air or the plan is not right is itself the competent outcome.

The line, segment by segment, each drawing on the units named:

1. Exit in a 2-4-way belly round. A stable, on-heading belly-formation exit and round. Draws on the belly-formation and exit foundations in FFP-F100 (exit order, gear, stability) and the belly relative-flying carried through FFP-AN101 (Track and navigate) and FFP-AN201 (Fly angles in a slot).
2. Build a belly open accordion. Transition the round into an open accordion, holding level and grips. Belly relative precision, FFP-AN201 slot discipline; group coordination from FFP-DY201 (Fly mixed orientations in a group).
3. Front layout to a head-down carve. A front layout out of belly into a head-down out-face/in-face carve. Layout and carve craft, FFP-DY301 (Fly dynamic lines) and FFP-DY201; head-down flying at crest standard from FFP-HD201/FFP-HD202 (Fly head-down in a 2-way / Demonstrate crest-standard head-down flying).
4. Head-down static round. Build and hold a static head-down formation on level and heading. Head-down group flying, FFP-HD301 (Fly head-down in groups).
5. Head-down static open accordion. Transition the static head-down round into an open accordion, holding proximity and level. Head-down group precision, FFP-HD301; transition control from FFP-HD202 and FFP-DY301.
6. Peel off into a head-down movement jump. Break the static formation into a moving (angle/dynamic) head-down segment, attacking a shared line. Head-down movement and leading, FFP-HD301, the head-down movement carried through FFP-DY301, and movement-leading doctrine from FFP-AN301 (Lead movement jumps).
7. Transition to a head-up movement jump. Take the moving group through the vertical into head-up movement, with a belly-led two-leader handover as the sight picture changes. Through-vertical transitions and the belly-leader handover, FFP-DY201/FFP-DY301; head-up movement leader craft (knee-fly, gather-then-navigate) from FFP-AN301.
8. Head-up pass-through into a head-up carve. A head-up pass-through resolving into a head-up carve, group close and tight. Head-up group flying and carving, FFP-HU301 (Fly head-up in groups) and the dynamic carving of FFP-DY301.

• Break off, the hardest breakoff on the jump. Break off per the head-down-first doctrine and the standard altitude guides: from the head-up segment.
• rotate from head-up to a head-first (head-down or belly) orientation first, then track the pre-assigned fan-out radial away from the group, never back-track away while still head-up (a head-up breakoff buys almost no separation, and a formation back-tracking from face-in slots converges rather than separates; Carlton, skydivemag 2026).

Roll to belly only on a clear trajectory with no one above, wash off vertical speed, clear airspace in every direction, and deploy at the planned altitude with separation complete at least 1,000 ft above deployment.

Altitude guides: freefly groups up to 4-way 5,000 ft (most modern jumpers use 5,500 ft for any freefly group and will generally not accept less); a head-up segment raises the floor to 5,500 ft minimum, so brief the breakoff to leave the flyer already head-first and tracking through Carlton’s ~6,500–7,000 ft window. Breakoff design and the head-down-first doctrine, this unit’s Element 4, FFP-HU301 and FFP-AN301.

This is the jump that demonstrates it all: static head-up and head-down, carving, layouts, head-down movement, head-up movement, the belly-led through-vertical handover, and the most difficult breakoff. Log it as a milestone, filmed, debriefed segment-by-segment in the shared vocabulary, a record of the achievement, not a credential.

Pre-requisite units

FFP-DY201 (mixed orientations in a group, the dynamic track’s internal safety gate, including head-down-crest-level competence for through-vertical jumps and the belly→back bail-out), FFP-DY301 (fly dynamic lines).

RPL route for the pre-requisites: logbook plus video of dynamic-line sky jumps at DY 301 standard (follow-the-leader lines with levels discipline and a disciplined breakoff) verified by a freefly coach, plus tunnel records evidencing IBA Dynamic Level 3-equivalent skills (belly/back/head-up carving, layouts).

Elements and performance criteria

1. Plan the jump

1.1

Design the line segment-by-segment in the shared FAI Dynamic vocabulary, naming each carve as in-face or out-face, each layout, each eagle or through-the-vertical transition (half eagles: head-first or feet-first through back-down or belly-down), and any snake- or mixer-derived pattern, so every participant briefs from one language.

1.2

Grade the planned jump by transition count (0 / 1–3 / 4+) and group size, matching the grade to the least experienced participant.

1.3

Plan the flight path off the jump run with a landmark reference for every transition segment, coordinated with every other group on the load (a guide: no more than two movement groups per load, a possible exception being a very experienced, mostly-vertical dynamic group, which consumes little more air than a vertical jump).

1.4

State the breakoff plan, breakoff altitude, the back-flyer roll rule, and deployment altitudes, with separation complete at least 1,000 ft above the planned deployment height (a guide: 5,000 ft for freefly groups up to 4-way, noting most modern jumpers use 5,500 ft for any freefly group and will generally not accept less).

2. Prepare

2.1

Brief and dirt-dive the line at tempo in the shared vocabulary, confirming each flyer's slot lane and the landmark at which every transition happens.

2.2

Complete a freefly-specific gear check: handle and pin protection, genuinely tight BOC, riser covers, closing loop, helmet, AAD on, audible(s) set to the briefed altitudes.

2.3

Confirm exit order and separation with the full load, notifying manifest of the group's flight path and planned opening area.

3. Perform

3.1

Fly the carving segments in-face and out-face, in both directions, holding the group's level (within a head height) and radial spacing at the briefed tempo.

3.2

Execute front and back layouts without leaving the briefed lane, driving the rotation from the back and head, not the arms, with visual reference held throughout.

3.3

Execute through-the-vertical transitions at the briefed landmarks, rejoining the group's level and spacing within a few seconds of completing the rotation.

3.4

Fly the briefed attack patterns, attacking the centre to keep the group close and tight: front attack with eagle (converging head-on with constant mutual visual contact, the higher flyer passing over through belly, the lower under through back, the over/under decision committed early), front attack with pass-by (converging offset, passing, then mirroring a transition through back or belly to finish face-to-face, generally flowing into a carve, or stalling to create a second pass-by or a line), vertical mirroring (matching the initiator's layout or stall side by side) and lead-and-follow (following directly behind the leader's cut line, tunnel-style).

3.5

Clear the target airspace visually before every transition, layout and attack, no blind moves.

3.6

Manage speed and pitch to arrest closure on the group, slowing on any overtake, never turning 180° to the group's heading.

3.7

Keep the group's line inside its own airspace, monitoring the jump run and the straight-down groups throughout, avoiding them is entirely the moving group's responsibility, never theirs.

3.8

Execute the briefed recovery on any instability: orient with the group, regain speed, return to the angle of attack, move aside and re-approach, never track away; if separated from the group, transition to back and follow from below.

4. Complete

4.1

Initiate breakoff at the briefed altitude, turning onto a clear radial while flattening pitch to a track.

4.2

If on the back at breakoff, roll to belly only once on a clear trajectory with no one above.

4.3

Deploy at the planned altitude, inside the group's planned opening airspace, after checking own airspace.

4.4

Fly the briefed canopy plan, holding off the jump-run line until other groups' airspace is confirmed clear.

5. Review

5.1

Debrief the line segment-by-segment against the plan on video, in the shared vocabulary.

5.2

Analyse own execution against competition-derived quality criteria: closeness of passes, synchronisation, uniformity of body position, no loss of balance.

5.3

Evaluate the flown difficulty against the briefed grade, setting the next jump's transition count and segments accordingly.

5.4

Log the jump in the logbook naming the unit and skills flown (e.g. "DY401, front attack with pass-by"), with criteria results and a short reflection, the curriculum is what makes the log entry meaningful.

Bold criteria are safety-critical. Within FFP courses they are treated as non-compensable best-practice standards (any Not Yet Satisfactory = unit Not Yet Competent); outside a course they remain strongly recommended best practice, The Freefly Project educates on risk, it does not regulate.

Foundation skills

• Shared-vocabulary communication (briefing and debriefing in FAI Dynamic terms across coaches, tunnels and countries).
• Altitude, closing-speed and transition-count numeracy.
• Planning and organising (flight-path design, load coordination, difficulty grading).
• Self-management while task-loaded (the flying runs on naturalised skill while attention is on traffic, navigation and the group, and standing down when readiness is not met).

Performance evidence (suggested sufficiency — adjust locally)

Ability evidenced across dynamic sky jumps in small groups, 2–3 flyers is the sweet spot, 4 the practical maximum, spanning jumps briefed at both the 1–3 and 4+ transition grades, covering all four attack patterns, flown with at least two different partners, camps or organisers, and including two consecutive jumps flying every briefed segment and meeting all criteria without coach assistance or prompts.

As a guide to how long this might take, competency is the standard, not the jump count, expect on the order of 12 jumps within a recommended 12-month currency window, more if the tunnel skills are still consolidating.

Substantial dynamic tunnel time (head-down carves both faces, bottom loops, carve switches, layouts, vertical stalls) plus practised leading and following is realistically a precondition for this style of flying and is strongly recommended as vocabulary and calibration development, but it substitutes for no sky assessment jump, it exercises no jump run, navigation, altitude or breakoff.

Knowledge evidence

• Design a dynamic jump plan in the FAI vocabulary and justify its grade by transition count and group size.
  • Classify moves using the FAI Annex B taxonomy, the six basic orientations, the rotation families and the circular pathways.
  • Flat turns, pirouettes, barrel rolls, cartwheels, front/back/bottom loops, side loops, twists.
  • In-face vs out-face carving; vertical orbits, eagles and reverse eagles, and the half-eagle equivalences with named transitions.
• Evaluate a planned jump’s difficulty using the transition-count matrix plus the FAI difficulty factors.
  • Connected sequences, multi-axis rotations, both carve directions, flying across others’ burbles, intermixing pathways, embedded moves.
• Analyse own video against the competition execution criteria (pass closeness, synchronisation, uniformity, balance).
• State the breakoff design for a small dynamic group, the breakoff altitude guides, the back-flyer roll rule (roll to belly only on a clear trajectory with no one above), deployment altitudes and the at-least-1,000-ft separation-above-deployment guide.
  • Freefly groups up to 4-way: 5,000 ft.
  • 5-way and larger: 5,500 ft, noting most modern jumpers use 5,500 ft for any freefly group and will generally not accept 4,500.
  • Head-up groups: 5,500 ft minimum, 6,000 ft for 6 or more, because head-up breakoff is demonstrably less efficient, less power, less track efficiency, and altitude lost rotating to head-down.
• Explain why advanced dynamic groups stay small, 2–3 is best, 4 the practical maximum, and beyond 6 is the territory of dedicated competition teams working up incrementally over many practice jumps, not weekend jumpers.
• Explain attacking the centre versus following a leader, walking through the four patterns and the decision inside each.
  • The early over/under commitment in the eagle, the mirrored transition in the pass-by, initiator-and-mirror roles in vertical mirroring, the follower’s lane in lead-and-follow.
• Explain why the belly flyer leads any line-based segment and how a two-leader handover works across a through-vertical pass, the new belly flyer “pulls” the group toward them and starts navigating as the new sight picture emerges, rather than a back flyer pushing a twitchy belly flyer in front.
• Explain corking’s speed differential (roughly 175→120 mph) and why the no-blind-moves, closure (slow, never turn 180° to the group’s heading) and in-slot recovery (never track away; if lost, back-fly and follow from below) rules exist.
• Describe the freefly-specific gear check and why each item matters at dynamic speeds.
• Explain the burble contrast between vertical and movement flying, vertical flyers cork up along a burble while tracking/angle no-fly zones trail the formation, locate the danger zones for a group doing both, and state why avoiding the straight-down groups rests entirely with the moving group.
• Explain why sustained back-fly segments on movement jumps demand explicit mitigations and state the mitigations the plan carries.
  • Community doctrine reserves back-flying on movement jumps for brief, highly experienced moments; some DZs require a belly “mirror” for a back-flying leader.
• Describe the competition pathways available as development context, indoor Dynamic 2-way/4-way (speed and free rounds, battle brackets), MFS, VFS and the APF Angle Flying levels (Beginner randoms → Open blocks including “Through the Vert”).
• Evaluate where a planned dynamic descent sits within local rules (freefly crests vs movement-jump endorsements) and who resolves the ambiguity.

Assessment conditions

Sky jumps from a recommended 13,000 ft minimum, dynamic lines consume altitude quickly at angle speeds of roughly 270–400+ km/h. A real small group, 2–3 flyers, 4 at most, is required for the group criteria; tunnel evidence is preparatory only. Mandatory video: dedicated camera flyer or leader-flown, candidate identifiable.

Required equipment: visual altimeter, functioning audible (two recommended), AAD, freefly-suitable gear with a genuinely tight BOC. Conditions within the group’s briefed limits, winds aloft assessed in planning. Assessor: an experienced dynamic/movement organiser or freefly coach current in mixed-orientation coaching, using the published FFP-DY401 checklist, each criterion marked Satisfactory / Not Yet Satisfactory.

Completion is recorded as a Mastery milestone only: it is not a sign-off, confers no privilege, and is not a permission to plan, lead or join any jump.

RPL evidence set

• Logbook plus video of mixed-orientation dynamic sky jumps at the 4+ transition grade, verified by a freefly coach.
• Tunnel records at IBA Dynamic Level 4 or Pro (or equivalent school records: head-down carves both faces, carve switches, bottom loops, layouts, per third-party summaries; verify against IBA source material).
• Competition evidence, indoor Dynamic 2-way/4-way, MFS, or APF Angle Flying Intermediate/Open results, as supporting (not substituting) evidence for the sky criteria.
• Or a challenge assessment across a suggested 4 jumps against the full criteria with a qualifying assessor.

Coaching priorities

Deliver in the project’s priority order: Safety → Fun → Learning (curriculum Part A0). Safety criteria are non-compensable; at Mastery tier the plan is still designed to the least experienced participant, and standing down when readiness is not met is itself competent behaviour.

The session is designed to be enjoyable, participants choose this expensive hobby, and enjoyment sustains both the flyer and the sport; debriefs end on a win with one improvement focus.

Sources