The group exit at a glance: set-up, launch, flyaway, the floater and diver positions and why spacing between groups counts. Only with a coach.
The honest answer up front: a group exit is an agreed, timed start of several jumpers from the aircraft. Each has a fixed position, leaves on a shared signal and flies away so that the group does not break apart [1]. The USPA uses the same building blocks as for a solo exit: set-up, launch and flyaway [1].
The risk lies in the group. If one dives too early or hangs on too long, you get a funnel: the formation collapses or fails [1]. And it can get dangerously fast: the speed difference between two jumpers can exceed 150 mph according to the USPA (about 240 km/h), about as fast as a high-speed train on a fast line [4].
The group exit belongs in the hands of coaches and licensed jumpers. This guide gives you an overview and the prerequisites. It is not a self-training manual and deliberately gives no details about climbing out on the strut and door.
Every group exit consists of set-up, launch and flyaway. In the set-up everyone has their position, with set foot and hand placement so that the hips point into the wind [1]. You can leave with or without grips on each other. On a gripped exit, presenting to the relative wind in a neutral body position is, per the USPA, the largest contributor to success [1]. Milestone: you can talk through the sequence on the ground with everyone involved.
One person gives the count. The movements are pronounced and have an even cadence so that everyone goes at the same time [1]. You follow the count, not your gut feeling.
The USPA names three exit types: front float (outside strut), rear float (inside strut) and diving exit [1]. A floater hangs outside the aircraft; in category H the coach leaves the aircraft as floater and you jump out after them as a diver and fly to them [2]. Divers leave slightly later than floaters [2]. How that looks on your drop zone's aircraft type, your coach shows you.
On the flyaway you keep eye contact across the centre of the group. That keeps you close to the others and prevents the exit from funnelling [1]. Milestone: you fly away and know every second where the centre of the group is.
Groups must separate horizontally after exit. The USPA recommends at least 1,000 ft (about 300 m) of ground separation between individuals and 1,500 ft (about 460 m) between small groups, more for larger ones [3]. That sounds like a pilot's detail but matters because otherwise all groups arrive under canopy in the same airspace. Many drop zones post a chart of separation times in the aircraft [3].
The breakoff window is a fixed part of the plan: for groups of five or fewer at least 1,500 ft above the highest planned deployment altitude, for six or more at least 2,000 ft [2].
This explains and motivates, it does not replace supervised training. The group exit is not meant for students or solo attempts.
Rehearse the exit without an aircraft, with everyone involved, on the ground: position, count, departure, eyes to the centre. The USPA names as part of the plan that everyone must know their position before boarding [1]. The routine takes a few minutes and saves you half the uncertainty in the aircraft (practical experience).
A floater hangs outside the aircraft on exit, on the outer (front float) or inner strut (rear float) [1]. In USPA category H the coach leaves the aircraft as floater, and you jump out after them as a diver [2].
A funnel occurs when a formation collapses or fails. A group exit is susceptible to it, hence the eye contact toward the centre of the group during the flyaway [1].
The USPA names at least 1,000 ft of ground separation between individuals and at least 1,500 ft between small groups, more for larger ones [3]. The separation time depends on wind and the aircraft's ground speed.
The USPA introduces them in categories G and H with a coach [1][2]. Larger groups come after the A licence [2]. Your instructor gives the clearance, not this text.
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