During a USPA Tandem Instructor Rating Course during the Red Bull Fly Girls event at Skydive DeLand in Florida, rating candidate Katie Hansen and a faux student perform a mock exit.

At Skydive Athens in Kastro, Greece, Panagiotis Spanos, A-78613, makes a scantily-clad, midwinter jump to celebrate his 100th skydive.

Editors Doug Garr, Michael Kearns, Tim Long and Jan Works recently released “More Skydivers’ Stories: Close Calls and Epic Feats Above Planet Earth,” the sequel to “NSTIWTIWGD” (“No, S***, There I Was, Thought I Was Gonna Die”), a 2015 compendium of scary jump stories written primarily by old-school jumpers and compiled by Long.

On March 8, skydiver and award-winning TV and film composer Kim Planert released his first solo album, “SKYLIGHT: Notes From a Logbook,” featuring the Budapest Scoring Orchestra and vocals by established artists such as Keeley Bumford, Lisbeth Scott and Waterson.

Fluid Wings began taking orders for its newest wing, the Echo, on February 14. The company produces the canopy, which it aims at intermediate jumpers who are looking for more performance than a basic entry-level wing, in 107-, 120-, 135-, 150- and 170-square-foot models.

Operation Wings of Freedom—an organization to help veterans battle post-traumatic stress disorder through skydiving—launched in January. The group hopes to help eight veterans achieve their A licenses in 2019. Wings of Freedom believes that skydiving can help veterans since it helps build a bond through shared experience, is highly intense and helps to develop powerful skill sets through the sport’s extreme demands.

Yong Chisholm, a longtime California skydiver of Korean descent, dreamed for more than 20 years of building an all-Korean freefall formation. It was a daunting task since skydiving is not common in Korea, and most jumpers there need to travel to the United States to have access to drop zones where they can improve their skills.

On February 14, the International Skydiving Museum and Hall of Fame announced its 2019 inductees. The museum will induct the 10 skydivers—Irena Avbelj, Chuck Collingwood (posthumous), Kate Cooper-Jensen, Patrick de Gayardon (posthumous), Alan Eustace, John Higgins, Andy Keech, Tom Sanders, Deke Sonnichsen and Lofty Thomas (posthumous)—at its Hall of Fame Celebration at Skydive Perris in California October 17-19. More information on the weekend event is available at skydivingmuseum.org.

On February 23, Jane Haynes celebrated her 100th birthday at Skydive Arizona in Eloy by making a tandem skydive (as did her daughter and granddaughter).

Maytown Sport Parachute Club in Marietta, Pennsylvania, honored founding member Dick Gochenaur, D-1404, at its February club meeting. The club presented him with a plaque and a check in recognition of his many years of selfless service dedicated to the continuing success of the club.

On January 18-20 at Skydive Arizona in Eloy, local wingsuit organizer Cameron Stiles hosted Project Desert Skies, an exclusive invitational event for wingsuit flyers. This was the second year for the event. Stiles gathered a talented team of more than a dozen accomplished flyers and led them across the desert skies in one formidable formation after the next.

Milko Hodgkinson organizes a pyramid-shaped formation over the Pyramids of Giza in Egypt.

Seven Hills Skydivers in Marshall, Wisconsin, once again hosted its annual ice jumps onto frozen Lake Mendota at the Wisconsin State Capitol in Madison. Sixteen jumpers participated this year, more than double the number of jumpers in 2018! Jump conditions were good (albeit brisk), with temperatures peaking at 16 degrees Fahrenheit in the afternoon.

Raymond Adams took the photo on the cover of the March issue of Parachutist at Skydive Georgia in Cedartown.

The USPA Membership Services Committee is currently seeking nominations for three of its service awards: the Lifetime Achievement Award (a maximum of one recipient annually), the Gold Medal for Meritorious Service (up to three recipients annually) and the Regional Achievement Award (up to five recipients annually).

During its recent meeting in Dallas, the USPA Board of Directors voted to support a major airport-access win for skydiving by Luther Kurtz, DZO of the Phoenix Skydive Center in Casa Grande, Arizona, under Part 16 of the Code of Federal Regulations. Kurtz will receive a $24,156.76 as a reimbursement for a share of his legal expenses through the Airport Access and Defense Fund. Details about the case are available in the article “DZO Wins Part 16 Appeal” on page 16 in the February issue of Parachutist.

On Saturday, January 26, California DZs Skydive Elsinore and Skydive San Diego held a friendly competition revolving around the Bob Buquor Memorial Star Crest Awards. Jumpers earn an SCR—an award conceived of by Bill Newell in 1965—by participating in a star (aka round) formation consisting of eight or more jumpers.

Canopy pilot Junior Ludvik and wingsuit pilot Calin Dobos fly together at the Skydive Dubai Desert Campus in the United Arab Emirates.