ENAC Skydiving License: How the Italian System Really Works

In Italy, ENAC issues a single Parachutist License: there are no A, B, C, or D levels in Italian regulations. Yet in forums, social media groups, and even some school communications, people still talk about a "license A" or "license B" as if they were separate ENAC documents. They are not. Let's break down the system as it actually is, without oversimplification.

What ENAC Actually Issues

The ENAC Regulation "Licenze di Paracadutismo" (Ed. 3) provides for a single Parachutist License. It is not divided into grades or levels: it is one document that certifies the holder's qualification to carry out the activity. Additional competencies do not generate a new license — they are endorsed on the same document as specific ratings.

The ratings ENAC endorses on the license are: CS (Certification of Suitability for Special Techniques, required for disciplines such as wingsuit, canopy formation, freefly, and others), Parachuting Instructor, IPS (Senior Parachuting Instructor), Parachuting Examiner, Tandem Master, and Jump Director. Each rating has its own requirements — minimum number of jumps, freefall time, specific courses, evaluation by an ENAC Examiner — as defined in the regulation. Anyone wishing to verify current requirements should consult the text in force directly at enac.gov.it, as the regulation may be updated.

ENAC also certifies skydiving schools (the so-called "ENAC schools") and regulates the jump aircraft, the drop zone, and operational procedures. The medical certificate required for the license is Class 2, issued by an authorized ENAC-certified medical examiner — not a general practitioner, and not a standard sports medicine physician.

The A/B/C/D System: What It Is and Where It Comes From

The letters A, B, C, D heard at Italian dropzones come from the FAI/USPA (United States Parachute Association) standard, adopted as an international convention for communicating a skydiver's experience level between schools and dropzones in different countries. They are not Italian license levels and do not appear in the ENAC Regulation.

In practical terms, the convention works as follows: the A license indicates the first level of operational independence, typically reached around 25 jumps with basic freefall and solo landing skills; B indicates an intermediate level, roughly from 50–100 jumps, with command of more complex formations; C indicates an experienced skydiver with several hundred jumps; and D the senior level, often required for organizational roles such as load organizer or tandem cameraman, typically beyond 500 jumps. These numbers are indicative: precise requirements vary according to the current version of the FAI standard and the policy of the individual school.

When an Italian school talks about a "license A," it is using this convention to say that the student has reached an experience level recognizable internationally. It is not describing an ENAC document. The distinction is not merely formal: it has practical consequences for what you can do, where, and under what regulatory framework.

The Role of AeCI and the Sporting License

Aero Club d'Italia (AeCI) is the national aeronautical federation recognized by CONI and affiliated with the FAI. It does not issue the parachutist license — that is ENAC's domain — but it manages the sporting side: membership, national competitions, records, and Italy's representation within the FAI through the National Parachuting Commission.

To take part in organized competitive activity — national FS, freefly, canopy piloting competitions, FAI records — a skydiver registers with a local aero club affiliated with AeCI. The sporting license that results is the relevant document for FAI competitions, not for everyday operational activity at the DZ. Anyone wishing to compete internationally needs both the ENAC license (to jump) and AeCI membership (to compete).

What You Need and When: A Practical Map

Here is the concrete distinction that matters for anyone in their first few hundred jumps. The ENAC Parachutist License is required to jump independently in Italy, to access operational ratings (Tandem Master, Instructor, CS for wingsuit and other special techniques), and to be recognized as a licensed skydiver by any ENAC-certified school. Without an ENAC license you cannot jump solo: you can do a tandem as a passenger, or follow an AFF course as a student under instructor supervision.

AeCI membership, on the other hand, is needed to compete in federal competitions, to obtain FAI sporting licenses recognized abroad, and to take part in activities organized under the federal umbrella. It is not required to jump recreationally at a DZ, but it becomes necessary as soon as you want to engage in structured competitive activity.

The A/B/C/D convention, finally, is used to communicate your experience level in a way that is internationally understood — useful when jumping abroad, participating in international organized events, or checking whether you meet the informal prerequisites for certain jumps. It does not replace the ENAC license or AeCI membership: it is a shared language, not a document.

Comparison Table: ENAC License, AeCI Sporting License, FAI/USPA Convention

To make the division of responsibilities clear, here is the framework we use in the editorial team when we receive questions on this topic:

— Jumping independently in Italy → ENAC Parachutist License (mandatory)
— Operational ratings (Tandem Master, Instructor, IPS, Examiner, CS) → ENAC (endorsed on the license)
— Medical certificate for the license → ENAC Class 2, issued by an authorized ENAC-certified medical examiner
— School where training takes place → ENAC-certified skydiving school
— Competing in national competitions → AeCI membership through a local aero club
— Records and international sporting licenses → FAI, represented in Italy by AeCI
— Communicating your experience level between international DZs → FAI/USPA A/B/C/D convention (not a document — an experience reference)
— Regulation governing the activity → ENAC Regulation "Licenze di Paracadutismo" Ed. 3 and the Regulation on ordinary and special jump procedures

Keeping Your ENAC License Current: Recency Requirements

The ENAC license does not expire based on a level: it is kept active by meeting recent activity requirements. The regulation requires at least 15 jumps in the last 12 months, of which at least 1 in the last 3 months, and at least 10 minutes of freefall every 12 months. The Class 2 medical certificate must be valid. If you fall outside these parameters, the license is considered "lapsed": returning to currency requires check jumps with an instructor, following the school's procedures, plus an updated medical.

This recency system is structurally different from the A/B/C/D logic, which is based on cumulative jump thresholds. ENAC focuses on continuity of activity: it does not matter how many total jumps you have — what matters is that you have jumped recently and that your medical status is current.

In Summary

The Italian system is simpler than the confusion in forums might suggest: one single ENAC license, operational ratings endorsed on that license, and AeCI membership for the sporting side. The letters A/B/C/D are a useful tool for tracking progression and communicating with the international skydiving world, but they carry no regulatory weight in Italy. When a school or forum refers to an "ENAC license A," it is using a convention loosely. The correct source is always the current ENAC Regulation, available at enac.gov.it, and the ENAC-certified skydiving school where training takes place.