> It is a lot safer than paragliding because you'll crack the landing gear or the tail and not your spine on a bad landing Many years ago I did both skydiving

> It is a lot safer than paragliding because you'll crack the landing gear or the tail and not your spine on a bad landing Many years ago I did both skydiving and paragliding. For skydiving, in approx 70 jumps I had one slightly twisted ankle (which was actually an earlier injury that had weakened the ankle) and saw one situation where a jumper was stretchered away (they landed on their backside because they were trying to hit a target with outstretched legs. I also had a parachute malfunction and safely deployed my reserve. In paraglidimg, over a shorter timeframe, two people in the club received bad injuries (broken leg and broken hip) and another smashed their helmet in a collision with a dry-stone wall. The problem with paragliding seemed to be that canopies could collapse at very low altitude due to air turbulence (rotors) around the tops of hills where flights started and usually ended. In contrast, in parachuting from planes, there was 'plenty' of time to deal with parachute opening malfunctions (and to open reserves), and it was rare for canopies to then fail due to wind or terrain.