The back loop in freefall: how the backward somersault comes from a sit, why the USPA requires heading within 60°, and how to finish it in 5 seconds.
The honest answer up front: the back loop is a backward somersault in freefall in which you flip over your back from belly-to-earth and land belly-to-earth again [1]. The USPA describes it as a dynamic manoeuvre that challenges the whole body [1].
Why do you learn it? It has two jobs. First, it is one of the three manoeuvres with which you show in category E that you stabilise from intentional instability within 5 seconds [1]. Second, it appears in the A-licence check: a back loop within 60° of the starting heading is required there, together with 360° turns and docking from 20 ft [3]. The DFV manual provides a stabilisation exercise with a somersault or roll in level VI [2].
The guide gives you an overview and the standards. It does not replace supervised training, and the back loop is learned with a coach or in the wind tunnel, not alone.
Breathe calmly, check heading, check altitude [1]. Milestone: you are stable and know your reserve down to the practice limit.
The USPA describes the start like this: you bring your knees up into a sitting position, stretch your arms out to the sides and widen your leg stance [1]. That creates the basis for the backward flip.
Then you push your legs out and look back in the direction of the loop. You keep your head back as you roll over until you see the horizon again [1]. Milestone: you roll through evenly without tipping sideways.
As soon as the horizon is back you return to the neutral position, relax and read the altimeter [1]. The USPA's limit is 5 seconds for the full recovery [1]. Milestone: after the loop you lie stable and on the heading you intended.
In the A-licence check you stay within 60° of the starting heading with the back loop [3]. You practise this with a coach: he judges the direction, you concentrate on symmetry.
This explains and motivates, it does not replace supervised training. Controlled instability is teaching material only with supervision.
Plan the return first, not the start. The USPA names two aids for recovery: HAALR and the roll-out-of-bed approach (rolling back to belly-to-earth over one side) [1]. Whoever knows how to get out of a botched loop can start the loop more calmly (practical experience).
A back loop is a backward somersault in freefall: you curl up to a sit, push the legs out, look back and flip over until the horizon [1]. After that you return to the neutral position [1].
In category E it shows (with barrel roll and front loop) that you recover from instability within 5 seconds [1]. In the A-licence check it is required within 60° of the starting heading [3].
The USPA calls it dynamic and demanding for the whole body [1]. How long you need to master it safely is individual, and there is no reliable figure for it.
It is a planned part of training. The main point is altitude control: the USPA describes that an analogue altimeter may read high when inverted [1]. That is why you practise only with supervision and down to the altitude limit.
In the back loop you go into a sitting position, push the legs out and look back [1]. In the front loop you instead bend sharply at the hips, throw your head forward toward your knees and tuck your legs in [1]. Both end in the neutral position, and both count toward the USPA 5-second limit [1].
Front Loop: The Forward Somersault in Freefall