Psycho1iam

I'm not expecting any change, they can run the DZ as they see fit, I just wondered what other DZ's do in terms of payment for a ride back down - it doesn't happen very often so I was just curious how it goes at other locations. Let's keep the discussion civil.

I agree with what's been said here, for the most part. If the conditions are questionable, it's really the jumper's choice to get on the plane. In this case there were some clouds already, so it wasn't totally out of nowhere, although things did close up quite fast. That's largely irrelevant though, the DZ did their part in providing a ride up, which is what you pay for. That being said, it bothers me a lot that they're willing to send tandems into a sea of clouds with no ground visible whatsoever (to make matters worse, we sighted airplane traffic under the clouds on the way up!). It says something about their priorities and concerns for regulations when nobody else involved (tandem instructors, pilot, DZO, etc) has a problem with that. But hey, it's not my license or life at risk, I guess. The whole situation just left a bad taste in my mouth...

At least one dropzone I have jumped at charges licensed skydivers for their jump even if they decide at altitude that the cloud conditions are unsafe to jump in. Is this common? Just last weekend I was on a load where the tandems exited first into a sea of clouds with no ground visible for miles (things closed up during the ride to altitude), and a number of the experienced jumpers refused to exit and rode the plane back down, only for them to try and charge us full price for the "jump." I understand that the plane doesn't fly for free, but I feel as if responsible behavior should be encouraged, not penalized. Any thoughts? What happens at your DZ if you ride back down?