Connecticut Parachutists, Inc.

CPI is an awesome place. I made my first jumps there about a year ago when my home DZ was all closed up for the Winter. Luckily for me, CPI jumps year round, and welcomed me with open arms when I showed up as "the guy from Jumptown".

The people at CPI are great. I can only speak for the Winter regulars, as I have only jumped there in the cold. But they are troopers, and show up every weekend regardless of how cold it is. It can be slow in the Winter, but everyone is willing to take turns getting on loads to be sure that everyone gets in at least one jump. This was awesome for me, because I drive 90 minutes to get to CPI, and if I can't make a jump, it wouldn't really be worth a 3 hour round trip.

The landing area is nice. The landing direction changes in regards to which direction the winds are blowing, and in one direction you have to come in on final over a line of trees. It can be a little tricky and turbulent if you don't plan it right, but I have never had any problems. Other than that, the landing area is perfect.

The scenery is awesome! Not much else to say, really. Even in Winter it is a really nice view 360 degrees around the airport.

I'd recommend CPI to anyone! They are a great bunch of people, they want to help people progress, they want to organize jumps, and overall, they want to have fun. Oh, and did I mention they are open in the WINTER?!? Yes!! CPI is the shiz.

CPI is a super friendly dropzone. I was able to hook up with people right away after a brief conversation with manifest and a waiver signing.

I had some super fun jumps.

This place is what skydiving is about. Jumpers having fun. Low key no pressure dives yet challenging dives.

The only time I was yelled at was because I didn't know where the foot path was.

I will definitally be coming back. They don't have the same facilities as some of the larger dropzones have, but when the day is done all you really need is some altitude and a nice landing area. Which CPI can get you the altitude, and the landing area is good enough for me to hit.

Less than impressed with the DZ where we did our tandems, my friend and I switched to CPI. We are so glad we did. We did our AFF at CPI, and the instruction and safety awareness were top notch. We have both moved out west, and we have never found another DZ like CPI. I second the other reviews for having a lot of people, lots of different things going on, but a small DZ feeling. They know who you are, they care about you, and they have your back. They bent over backwards for us as students.

Even though this is a club I was welcomed & felt a warm vibe. I did tandem w/ friend there & we had complete confidence in instructors who were both professional & a lot of fun!! The instructors & videoflyers were fun & confident. I had no problem or worries jumping because I felt so safe w/ them. I've recommended the place to many coworkers & friends & they come back to me saying the same things. Because of them I started AFF at another DZ & only wish I lived near enough to them to do it there. Thank you CPI/ Ellington.

This dropzone really has the atmosphere of a little Cessna DZ, but with lots of people and a Twin Otter. I was really surprised by the number of people there on a typical summer weekend and the variety of things going on. RW, freeflying, wing suits, accuracy, etc, all going on. Only thing I didn't like was the outdoor (covered) packing which sucked on the 90+ degree days, and the lack of packers when I really didn't feel like packing.

The DZ is located in a great spot on the airport with a perfect view of the landing area on one side, the runway on the other side, and a helicopter flight school across the ramp, which is fun to watch when you're waiting for a load.

Great DZ!