ENAC Parachuting Licences Regulation Ed.3: What Changes for Licensed Skydivers

The season is back, and so is that moment when someone asks: have you read Edition 3? And you — somewhere between packing jobs — realise you haven't actually read it, or only skimmed it. This piece is for skydivers who already hold an ENAC licence and want to understand what the current regulation covers, without having to decode a multi-page official document on their own. That said, one non-negotiable caveat: exact numerical requirements — jump counts, freefall time thresholds, and medical deadlines — must always be verified against the current official text available at enac.gov.it. This article gives you orientation; it does not replace reading the document itself.

Why Edition 3 Exists and What Drove the Revision

ENAC regulations are not rewritten on bureaucratic whim. Each new edition responds to a concrete need: alignment with European standards (EASA and EU civil aviation legislation), updating of practised disciplines (wingsuit, angle flying, high-speed canopy piloting), and correction of ambiguities that had over time produced inconsistent interpretations across schools. Edition 3 of the 'Parachuting Licences' Regulation consolidates the structure of the single parachutist licence — the document ENAC issues and the only legally valid authorisation to jump in Italy — and redefines the system of ratings endorsed on the licence itself.

One point worth stating clearly: the ENAC regulation does not refer to A, B, C, or D licences. That classification is a convention derived from the FAI/USPA standard, useful for communicating with international dropzones but carrying no regulatory weight in Italy. Your ENAC document shows a single licence with any applicable rating endorsements — not a letter.

Licence Structure: What the Regulation Covers

The core of the regulation is the distinction between the parachutist licence and ratings. The licence is the base qualification that authorises independent activity. Ratings are added and endorsed on the licence itself, each with its own requirements for experience, training, and — where applicable — examination.

Parachutist Licence

This is the document that authorises you to jump independently. It is obtained upon completing a training programme (AFF or static line) at an ENAC-certified parachuting school and passing the required examination. It has no fixed expiry in the sense of 'must be renewed every X years': it remains valid as long as the recency requirements set out in the regulation are met and your Class 2 medical certificate is current.

Recency requirements include a minimum number of jumps in the last 12 months, a recent jump within a shorter period, and a minimum of freefall minutes (typically 15 jumps in the last 12 months, at least 1 in the last 3 months, 10 minutes of freefall — verify against the official text). The exact figures — and the procedures for returning from inactivity — are defined in the regulation: do not rely on memory or word of mouth, check them. This is not a bureaucratic disclaimer: regulatory revisions change precisely these thresholds, and incorrect recency information can cost you an unplanned check jump, or worse.

Ratings Endorsed on the Licence

The ratings system is where Edition 3 has introduced the most significant changes for active skydivers. The main categories:

CS — Special Techniques Certifications: these authorise disciplines that carry additional risks or require specific training. This category includes wingsuit, canopy formation (CF/CRW), high-speed canopy piloting, and other disciplines defined in the regulation. Each CS has its own requirements (jump counts, type of jumps, training with a qualified instructor).

Parachuting Instructor: a teaching rating with significant minimum experience requirements (jump count, freefall time, specific training). Authorises the instruction of student skydivers.

IPS — Senior Parachuting Instructor: the higher tier of the instructor rating, with even more stringent requirements.

Parachuting Examiner: the highest level, for conducting formal examinations and assessments.

Tandem Master: a specific rating for tandem jumps with a passenger.

Jump Director: a rating for the operational management of jumps at the drop zone.

Each rating has its own maintenance requirements (specific recency, periodic refreshers) that are in addition to those of the base licence. If you are an instructor who jumped infrequently last winter, you may find your base licence is current but a rating needs refreshing.

The Class 2 Medical Certificate: The Detail That Catches People Out at the Start of the Season

Every year, at the start of the season, someone shows up at the drop zone with their licence in hand and a note signed by their GP. That is not how it works. The ENAC regulation requires a Class 2 medical certificate, issued exclusively by an ENAC-authorised certifying medical examiner (internationally referred to as an AME, Aeromedical Examiner, though the formal Italian reference is the ENAC certifier). Not a sports medicine doctor, not a GP, not your trusted cardiologist: only the ENAC certifier.

The frequency of the medical examination, as established by the ENAC regulation, depends on the skydiver's age and any existing medical conditions. The regulation defines the deadlines: check them in the official document or directly with your certifier. The list of authorised ENAC certifying medical examiners is available on the ENAC portal.

For tandem jumps as a passenger (not as a Tandem Master) the situation is different: a self-declaration of good health signed on the day of the jump is sufficient. But this does not apply to anyone who holds a licence and jumps independently.

What to Do in Practice If You Already Hold a Licence

Here is the practical part. No generic checklist: each point has a concrete action attached to it.

1. Check Your Recency

Open your logbook (paper or digital) and count your jumps over the last 12 months. Then check how many you have made in the last 3 months. Then calculate your freefall minutes. Compare these figures against the requirements in the current ENAC regulation — not what you remember or what someone at the drop zone told you. If you are out of recency, returning to jumping requires check jumps with an instructor following the procedures of an ENAC-certified school: plan this before you show up at the manifest.

2. Check the Expiry Date of Your Class 2 Medical Certificate

Your medical certificate has an expiry date written on it. If it has expired — even by a single day — you cannot jump independently. Book your appointment with an authorised ENAC certifier well in advance: at certain times of year waiting times can stretch out.

3. Check Your Endorsed Ratings

If you hold CS ratings (wingsuit, CF, canopy piloting, etc.) or teaching ratings (Instructor, TM, Jump Director), verify that the maintenance requirements for each one are met. Do not assume that base licence recency also covers your ratings: they often have their own, more stringent thresholds.

4. Read the Updated Regulation Text

It sounds obvious, but very few people actually do it. The ENAC 'Parachuting Licences' Regulation Edition 3 is available as a free download from the ENAC portal. Set aside an hour for it: it is a technical document but not an impenetrable one. Pay close attention to the sections on recency requirements, procedures for returning from inactivity, and the requirements for any CS ratings that apply to you. If there is an implementing circular associated with Edition 3, read that too: circulars often clarify points the regulation leaves ambiguous.

5. Talk to Your Jump Director or School

The Jump Director at your drop zone has operational responsibility for jumps and knows the local procedures for returning from inactivity. If you have any doubts about your standing under the regulation, ask them before you board the aircraft. That is not a sign of weakness: it is exactly how the system is meant to work.

CS Ratings: The Most Relevant Chapter for Active Skydivers

If you fly wingsuit, canopy formation, or high-speed canopy piloting, Special Techniques Certifications are the part of the regulation that concerns you most directly. Each CS requires:

A minimum number of total jumps and discipline-specific jumps

A training programme with an instructor qualified for that CS (e.g. a first flight course for wingsuit)

Any specific recency requirements to keep it current

An examination or assessment for issuance

Edition 3 has redefined or clarified the requirements for certain CS ratings. If you already hold a CS issued under a previous version of the regulation, do not automatically assume it is still valid without checking any transitional provisions that may apply. This is one of the points where it is worth reading the original text or contacting ENAC directly.

A Point That Often Causes Confusion: 'A/B/C/D Licences'

I will say this once and not come back to it: if your school or drop zone uses the letters A, B, C, D to indicate experience levels, it is using a convention derived from the FAI/USPA standard, which is useful for international communication. It is not Italian regulatory terminology. Your ENAC document will not say 'Licence B' or 'Licence C'. It will say 'Parachutist Licence' with any applicable ratings endorsed on it.

This does not mean the letters are useless — they are a shared language that works across drop zones around the world. But when it comes to legal obligations, regulatory requirements, and what you need to do to jump legally in Italy, the reference is the ENAC Regulation, not the USPA standard.

In Summary: What to Do Before You Return to Jumping

An operational summary for anyone who has jumped little or not at all in recent months:

Download and read the ENAC 'Parachuting Licences' Regulation Edition 3 from enac.gov.it

Check your recency in your logbook against the regulation's requirements

Check the expiry date of your Class 2 medical certificate

Check your CS ratings and their specific recency requirements where applicable

Contact your drop zone's Jump Director for return-to-jumping procedures if you are out of recency

Do not rely on what you remember or what someone told you: the source is the official document

The regulation is not the enemy. It is the framework that allows all of us to jump at certified drop zones with shared standards. Reading it is not homework: it is part of being a responsible skydiver.