In military parachuting, how to fall is one of the first things you learn. The PLF (Parachute Landing Fall) is taught as a safe way to distribute the force of

In military parachuting, how to fall is one of the first things you learn. The PLF (Parachute Landing Fall) is taught as a safe way to distribute the force of your impact with the ground gradually over more surface area of your body as opposed to just the bottoms of your feet. The former can bruise the hips shoulders and occasionally ring your bell, the latter breaks ankles. When jumping a typical static line square or circle (ie T 10-D) parachute your descent speed (full combat load) can be as fast as jumping off the peak of the roof of a one story home without a parachute. Your lateral speed can often be 10 knots.