Nik’s photography website recently got an overhaul. It now features portfolios of various topics and new content. Enjoy!
The Drop
News and Resources from AXIS Flight School
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AXIS Flight School instructor Brianne Thompson is featured on the latest Performance Designs advertisement flying the PDR.
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Over the past 3 years, AXIS Flight School has been working with Good Goblin Games to develop a new kind of skydiving app. Featuring Woody, an animated and interactive figurine that helps demonstrate body-flight and canopy-piloting concepts. In addition, the app features many more useful tools for everyone from the casual jumper to instructors and competitors.
AXIS Skydiving
Skydiving Tutorials and Tools.
A great compendium of exercises, knowledge, visualizations, and tools for skydivers and tunnel flyers.Meet Woody! Your interactive wooden dummy guide with comprehensive information using amazing skydiving and canopy animations for a broad spectrum of experience and skill levels. Great for novice jumpers who wish to learn more, and a fantastic tool for coaches who need visuals for their students.
Available in the iTunes App Store, and Google Play. 
Features● Education:-Hi-res animations and photos of each exercise-Easy-to-understand detailed descriptions-Search by body-flight orientation or canopy piloting skills● Calculators:-Exit separation,-Reserve Repack Cycle,-Wing Loading,-Canopy Size Orientation Guide● Competition tools:-Adjustable count down timer with audio cue,-Pace, score and bust tracker-Draw generator-Performance analyzer-Dive poolsIf you are looking for more in depth knowledge, consider supporting us with an annual subscription. We regularly update adding new skydive content and features. -
In addition to competing in 4-way VFS with Arizona X-Force during the 22nd FAI World Cup of Formation Skydiving, Brianne Thompson also participated in 4-way FS female with team Phoenix XP. Having medaled in both events, Brianne is the first American and third person in skydiving history to medal in FS and VFS at the same World level competition. This feat was first accomplished by the Lemay brothers of the Canadian National Team Evolution in 2014.
Congratulations Brianne on this amazing accomplishment!
Brianne Thompson with two bronze medals at the 22nd FAI World Cup of Formation Skydiving. Photo Niklas Daniel To view scores and videos, please choose from the following links:
4-way Female (605 USA 1)
4-way VFS (501 USA 2)
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Bronze Medal for Arizona X-Force in 4-Way VFS!
The 22nd FAI World Cup of Formation Skydiving was held at Skydive Arizona in Eloy from October 7th to the 12th. Arizona X-Force attended after having just completed the USPA Nationals in mid September.The competition started out strong, with the top three teams being neck and neck. As time went on, the field started to widen. The Russian team, Vertical FlyStation, and SDC Core (USA) took the top two spots.
Image created using the AXIS DrawGenerator Training Camp Tool. 
To watch all competition videos, please visit the Omniskore website. 
USA 4-way VFS Team Arizona X-Force on the podium. Photo Meghan Stewart. Arizona X-Force steals the FUN flag!
National Skydiving League (NSL) reported that X-Force had located and stolen the FUN Flag from the Norwegian VFS team, Blue Pelicans.
X-Force showing off possession of the FUN Flag at Square2. Photo Ryan Vivion. Keeping with the tradition, the team immediately found a new hiding spot for it, even though it was in plane sight.
The current location of the flag is unknown as it was last seen claimed by the Swedish VFS team, Kwansta Kwattro, on Picacho Peak.
Read more about the FUN Flag tradition here.
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AXIS Flight School has uploaded sample videos of all 22 blocks from the Vertical Formation Skydiving dive pool to its YouTube Channel. You can check out the full playlist here. Special thanks to Arizona X-Force videographer Nathan Roth for the footage.
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Silver Medal for X-Force in 4-Way VFS Open!
During the 2019 USPA National Skydiving Championships Arizona X-Force came in second in the 4-Way VFS Open event. The vertical formation skydiving event completed all 10 scheduled rounds, with four teams in each of the open and advanced divisions. One team, “Why Not”, competed in the intermediate division.X-Force — now in its second year with the current line-up — scored a 16.3 points average, a lower score than last year, however flying at a faster pace – 18.9. The team used this years USPA Nationals as a training camp leading up to the World Cup which will take place in the first week of next month in Eloy, AZ at Skydive Arizona. The team plans to peak next month, having a better understanding of what the judges will be looking for and enforcing.Watch all 10 rounds here.X-Force did walk away from this years Nationals with a new personal best, a highest scoring round of 24 points in round 9. Unfortunately this round got busted down from a 33.
SDC Core once again took the gold medal and Arizona Anthem took bronze. To view all scores and competition videos, check out Omniskore. Arizona X-Force would like to thank all of its sponsors and supporters for making a successful 2019 season possible, and congratulate its fellow competitors for a great competition!Niklas Daniel makes USA Speed Skydiving Team!
After 4-way VFS concluded, Nik tossed his hat in the Speed Skydiving ring. Having previously competed in the discipline two years earlier at Skydive Perris, his main goal was to reach a new personal best – breaking his top speed of 443.32kmh / 275.5mph. Nik accomplished that on six out of the eight rounds, reaching a new top speed of 465.6kmh / 289.3mph in round 3.
Coming in 5th, Nik’s performance earned him a spot on the USA Team. The 2020 World Championships will be held in Tanay Siberia, Russia.
4-way Team AZ Shift (player coach)
Brianne Thompson brought a 4-way FS player coach team to the 2019 USPA Nationals; competing in the advanced category with the name AZ Shift. This was the team’s first Nationals, finishing with a 9.5 average over 10 rounds.
Congratulations Leanne, Bob, Trip, Brianne, and Tom! Mixed Formation Skydiving Team EagleBear
I would like to congratulate Joe, Andre, and Leland of team EagleBear who took 3rd in the MFS open category. After a two year break, the team got together at Skydive Arizona one week before the competition in order to prepare for the Nationals. After around 60 training jumps with AXIS Flight School and several hours of tunnel time, EagleBear got onto the podium with a 13.25 average over eight rounds. Truly giving some of the most experienced and trained teams a run for their money, EagleBear was only 5 points behind the first place team, Flightshop.
Congratulations EagleBear! -
Niklas Daniel and Brianne Thompson of AXIS Flight School are coming to Berlin this fall! This camp will be a very personalized and focused two day event of flying aimed at honing your skills when it comes to personal progression and or formation flying skills. These flight sessions will have detailed briefs and video debriefs to help you work on your skills in a controlled environment. You will have ample opportunity to ask questions and get feedback on your flights! Bilingual instruction is available as Nik is a German speaker.
Get to know the coaches Nik and Brianne, and check out their story.
Camp Format
- One hour minimum (10 slots available)
- Participants will be organized into one hour groups, flying 15 minute sessions.
- 1.5 – 2.5 minute rotations depending on skills worked on.
- Plenty of breaks for rest, prep, and debriefing.
- Campers can choose between working on personal body-flight skills or formation flying skills.
- AXIS Coaches are available to coach teams! (4-way FS and VFS disciplines).
Qualifications
There are no prerequisites. All skill levels and experience welcome. AXIS Coaches can sign off IBA flyer ratings, as well as provide AXIS Merits after a skill has been acquired.
When and Where
Oct. 24 – 25
at WINDOBONA Indoor Skydiving Berlin,
Landsberger Allee 268, 10367 BerlinPrice
€725.00 per hour, which included tunnel time and coaching. Participants may use their personal block time, but must make special arrangements to do so. In that event, the coaching cost is €250.00 per hour.
LIMITED SLOTS AVAILABLE
Oct 24th 0900 – 4x 15minutes 1100 – 4x 15minutes 1230 – 1330 Lunch Break 1400 – 4x 15minutes 1600 – 4x 15minutes 1800 – 4x 15minutes
Oct 25th 0900 – 4x 15minutes 1100 – 4x 15minutes 1230 – 1330 Lunch Break 1400 – 4x 15minutes 1600 – 4x 15minutes 1800 – 4x 15minutes
SIGN UP!
Please register for this event by sending us an e-mail to info [at] axisflightschool.com
We look forward to flying with you!
AXIS on Skydiving and Bodyflight
This overview lists all of our articles (140+; Foundations of Flight as well as Feature Articles).
Find the AXIS videos on skydiving on our YouTube channel.
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AXIS Flight School would like to thank Annette O’Neil for writing the following article about the new AXIS Merits System.
Photo by Samantha Schwann AXIS provides bespoke education for Smart Skydivers: Now with (Gorgeous) Merits!
Ask anyone who’s been in the sport for more than a couple of seasons: the times, they are a changin’. For the first 15 to 20 years of sport skydiving’s popular heyday, there wasn’t any doubt that the party lay at the heart of the matter. In the not-too-long-ago bad old days, your standard sport skydiver would go about chasing boogies all season long — and chase the sun to find even more skydiving parties when her/his own season ran out. Beer, tent cities and magic-carpet exits ruled the day
In recent years — as you may have noticed — the sport is sobering up. Today’s skydiver has a different goal to chase: skill development. Suddenly, it’s not enough to simply jump out of an airplane with your buddies; now, you’d better be using that jump to get — well — better. This is the age of the skills camp; of the training trip; of one-on-one coaching. People just want more. And can you blame ‘em?
Enter AXIS — one of skydiving education’s indisputably premium brands. Brianne Thompson and Niklas Daniel, AXIS’s owners and instructors, are a pair of highly decorated skydivers who founded AXIS as a boutique instruction operation. The intentionally-small operation has been based at Skydive Arizona since 2010. In that time, Nik and Brianne have managed to actually revolutionize how skydiving is coached.
How’d they do that? In essence, by… Continue reading on SkydiveMag.com
The Drop 