Category: News

The 3rd annual Australian Indoor Skydive Championships was held on the 18/19 August at iFLY Downunder; Sydney. With competition fiercely fought over 2 days, it was non-stop action incl. 172 competitors running in 86 different teams over 13 categories!

Competitors came from all corners of Australia, as well as 15 from New Zealand and 8 Singaporean athletes showcasing their talents and raking in some well-deserved medals.

Kyra Poh, a stellar flyer from Singapore, proving why she is one of the worlds best flyers; entered 4 categories and took out 4 Gold medals!

This year we also introduced the new FAI dive pool for Open VFS and extended the competition to 10 rounds for both Open VFS and Open FS (AAA).

FS being the largest discipline represented overall was split into 4 categories, Rookie, A, AA and Open (AAA). The Open division was one of the tightest fought battles we’ve seen, with team “ITCHY SCRATCHY” edging out “MAHONEY MAHONEY MAHONEY” by just 1 point after 10 rounds!

The other categories of FS were also hard fought with lots of highs (and lows) for each of the teams competing. Excluding the less PC team names we may have seen, the best name would have to be Silver Medallist team (Rookie Category) “4 WINDOW LICKERS IN A BLENDER”… also seemed appropriate, complete with team t-shirts made just for the occasion… Nice one!

Open VFS was taken out for the third year in a row by Australia’s premier team “FOCUS”, who also set an indoor competition record of 38 points in round 3. The two remaining team FOCUS flyers also managed to pull together a second scratch team just before rego closed, and scored a respectable 9.6pt average with no training at all.

2-way VFS featured 20 teams across intermediate and open categories and everyone charged hard with the Perth (Brazilian) connection medalling in both categories. It will be great to see these flyers develop even further towards 4-way VFS for next years Champs.

Dynamic flying was just awe inspiring, to watch the precision and speed at which this discipline runs. It was a solid competition with multiple teams in both 2-way and 4-way, with the Singaporean girls of team ‘Firefly’ taking Gold and showing total professionalism for their age. They joined forces with our own team ‘iFLY Downunder’ to take the 4-way Gold. Every team in these disciplines were exceptional to watch, including the iFLY CEO Wayne Jones himself, showing us how the “OLD DOGS” run.

Freestyle was great to see some more of the lower speed flowing style of all round flying mixed in with spectacular tricks and individual expression, as well as our beloved Johnny Townsager competing again in his favourite discipline for the first time since an accident that kept him out of the wind for a long time. So happy to have you back Johnny!

But the one that never fails to put smiles on the entire crowd was, of course, the kids. Growing in numbers again from last year, due primarily to the graduates of our Junior iFLYER kids club, we had a total of 17 kids over 2 Freestyle categories. Not a single person in the crowd, including the judges, were immune to the cuteness of some of the smallest and youngest flyers we have. Seeing their faces when they nail that double barrel roll that they had been training so hard to achieve.

Their own iFLY Coaches found it very difficult to hide their smiles seeing their young proteges take everything they had learnt into practice and make them proud. Awesome work guys!

RED BULL was a major supporter of the event this year, again providing the DJ and free cans of Red Bull over both days, as well as one of the major prizes that money can’t buy – a flight in the Red Bull Air Race stunt plane!!!

Aussie Red Bull Pro-Skater, Mikey Mendosa, also came through on Saturday to watch the action and being a tunnel flyer himself, looks forward to getting into a team and competing next year.

Saturday progressed into the afternoon when 1000 KRISPY CRÈME DOUGHNUTS arrived to keep the energy levels high for the tail end of the comp, and people were kept suitably limber with regular trips to the SPINAL & SPORTS CARE massage team on site providing a choice of pleasure or pain for a gold coin donation.

As the final rounds of comp were winding up on Saturday, the place became a sea of pizza before the presentations and awards ceremonies and last live broadcast. Then the doors were locked for the private huck-jam and party.

From all the comments and feedback that we have received is summed up in these words: Well done iFLY, well done!

Check out some of the photos we uploaded onto Facebook right on the night of the Champs here.

Download all the results here.

And stay tuned for the FULL video of all the action (COMING SOON) – Here is the teaser to keep satisfied for now!

ISA Group is pleased to announce that our iFLY Perth facility has won the MASTER BUILDERS-BANKWEST EXCELLENCE IN CONSTRUCTION AWARDS, Best Public Use Building (Under $20million)!

This award is particularly important to us as the definition of good public space encapsulates everything that we represent as an organisation.

Including; building a community, providing a supportive space for events, and in general, to inspire and attract indoor skydiving enthusiasts to come together. All of which we have accomplished with a range of successful events held at the facility!

Our Family Open Day, held in December 2016, drew in over 400 parents, kids and grown-ups! While our recent ‘Superhero Training Days’, held during the July 2017 holiday, inspired kids to FLY like their favourite superheroes. Check out the photos here from the event.

Additionally, all our iFLY facilities (incl. iFLY Perth) are designed to be accessible by wheelchair, as well as our restrooms and entrances. FSG Australia, who offers an innovative range of disability, mental health and aged care services came and declared iFLY to be ‘accessibly ready’! Check out the stories of those who FLY without limitation here.

Congratulations to our builder Metrowest Constructions for their work and winning this award!

Check out all the 2017 awards and their winners here.

Ever wanted to go to Superhero School?

All kids dream of flying alongside their favourite heroes, and during the July school holidays, iFLY Indoor Skydiving made that a reality nation wide, with the very first of its kind ‘Superhero Training Days’!

Anyone can be a superhero, and we proved to kids, at all three of our locations, iFLY Downunder (Sydney West), iFLY Gold Coast & iFLY Perth that it doesn’t take a cape to be LIFTED off the ground.

Kids experienced:

• An on-location theatre with a super villain stealing the wind (check it out below)

• Photo booth (check out the photos)
• Superheroes walking around entertaining the kids
• Belly flying training
• A walk in the wind
• Indoor Skydiving demos from our instructors/superheroes

And kids had the opportunity to witness our Junior iFLYERS (ages 6 – 16) take flight and show-off some impressive aerial performances!

Check out the videos below.

Want to find out how to send your kids FLYING like superheroes with our Junior iFLYER Programme?!

More information can be found on our website: https://downunder.iflyworld.com/ifly-kids. You can also email us at:

info.pen@ifly.com.au – iFLY Downunder (Sydney West)

info.gc@ifly.com.au – iFLY Gold Coast

info.per@ifly.com.au – iFLY Perth

or call on 1300 366 364.

Check out all the photos from our little superheroes here.

We are searching for a CHIEF INSTRUCTOR to be a team leader at the first AirRider Indoor Skydiving facility in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia!

LOCATION: Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

POSITION: Full-time, 40 hours per week

COMPANY OVERVIEW
Leisured Escapades is Jointly owned subsidiary between Indoor Skydive Australia Group Limited (ISA Group) and Bandar Utama City Sdn Bhd (1 Utama) formed to operate world class Indoor Skydiving Facilities across Malaysia under the brand AirRider.

Established in 2011, ISA Group have built and are operating a number of indoor skydiving facilities across Australia.  AirRider 1 Utama will be ISA Group’s first facility outside of Australia and is due to open its doors in December 2017.

The indoor skydiving facility is being developed as part of the extension of the 1 Utama Shopping Centre which includes access to the Bandar Utama MRT station, linking 1 Utama to the Greater Kuala Lumpur region. With over 30 million visitors per year, the 1 Utama shopping centre is an “all in one” complex combining retail, leisure, sporting and entertainment facilities.

THE ROLE
AirRider 1 Utama are looking for a Chief Instructor to lead the to lead the instructor team, coordinate and provide ongoing IBA instructor training and take on a shift manager role in addition to providing coaching services and normal instructor duties as required.

Kuala Lumpur is a vibrant and metropolitan city with easy access to the rest of South East Asia and Australia.  We offer an attractive expat salary package with numerous benefits to assist with the transition.

RESPONSIBILITIES
As the Chief Instructor, you will be ultimately responsible for the safety of staff and instructors inside the wind tunnel. You will ensure the instructor team keeps up to date with IBA guidelines and carries out their instructor duties safely and responsibly, including coordinating and conducting ongoing IBA training.

As well as perform general instructor duties taking first-time flyers and experienced flyers in the wind tunnel, you will provide personal coaching services and any other specialised services in the tunnel. You will lead by example and deliver a high level of customer service to provide a safe and fun customer experience.

You will take on general management duties including high-level problem solving and troubleshooting, opening and closing of the facility and be dealing with customers and reporting.

You will be expected to assist in day to day general facility duties where necessary and work with the rest of the management team to ensure a smooth running and safe experience for all.

REQUIREMENTS

TO APPLY

Please send a comprehensive CV and covering letter by 4^th August 2017 to:

Alex Smith
Operations Manager – South East Asia
e-mail:  asmith@indoorskydive.com.au

If you have any questions or queries, please feel free to contact me via e-mail or phone:

Tel: +61 (0)44 834 5773

LINKS:

https://xrgroup.com.au/

http://www.1utama.com.my/

iFLY Gold Coast is proud to be sponsoring, 13-year-old, indoor skydiving athlete, Sarah Yates!

Sarah had her first taste of indoor skydiving at iFLY Downunder (Sydney West) in 2013 which sparked her love of FLYING! When Indoor Skydive Australia Group announced that a facility would be opening in Sarah’s home turf on the Gold Coast, Sarah couldn’t wait to get back in the wind and follow her passion for flying.

All it took was an iFLY Fast Track course before Sarah joined the Junior iFLYER Club, and from there, quickly progress to being coached by iFLY Instructor, Matt Boag.

August 2016 saw Sarah competing in the Australian National Indoor Skydiving Championships at iFLY Downunder (Sydney West), where she came 4th in the Junior Freestyle competition after only six months of training! At the same competition, Sarah teamed up with Amy Watson, 11 year old junior indoor skydiving champion from Sydney, with the pair competing together in Two Way VFS (Vertical Formation Skydiving). The girls had loads of fun flying together and took out the trophy for “People’s Choice Award”.

In December 2016, Sarah went to compete in the Battle of the Blades competition in Seattle USA, where she also placed 4th in the Junior Freestyle. She teamed up with a Seattle local flyer, Huntar McKim, and competed again in the Two Way VFS against adults, again coming in 4th – a fantastic achievement for someone so new to the sport.

Sarah has quite an inspiring story, suffering from a medical condition known as CRMO (Chronic Recurrent Multifocal Osteomyelitis) which involves painful inflammation in the bones and can limit her from certain activities. Indoor skydiving has been a fantastic exercise program and sport for her as it is gentle on her joints. Sarah said she loves flying because it gives her a sense of freedom.

Check out Sarah’s interview from Queensland Weekender’s Liz Cantor, during their visit to iFLY Gold Coast.

Sarah is determined to improve her placings in each competition she enters and dreams of being able to compete in more international competitions in the future.

Along with her love of indoor skydiving, Sarah also loves to sing, act and has appeared in several TV commercials, short films, television series and even music videos!

We look forward to seeing Sarah continually progress with this fantastic sport and will be cheering her along every step of the way.

Check out the Junior iFLYER Programme to see how your kids can get involved in indoor skydiving at iFLY!

iFLY Downunder recently opened its doors for an event aimed to support the Australian charity organisation, Soldier On, whose mission is to assist ex-servicemen/servicewomen and their families reintegrate into civilian life.

The day hosted at iFLY Downunder (Sydney West), gave servicemen and women the opportunity to enjoy indoor skydiving along with their families. These events are vital as it gives former teams a chance to re-connect with old friends with an emphasis on community building.

“I was fortunate to run into several people that I had worked with previously and it was nice to see that they were doing ok.” – Soldier On flyer

Everyone, kids and partners included, boldly stated they had a fantastic time trying something new while sparking up some old and new yarns.

“I have never been skydiving before. The challenge of doing something different, and doing an activity that takes me outside my comfort zone with other veterans is so vital to maintaining my mental, physical, and social wellbeing.” – ex-serviceman

Thousands of those serving will be affected either physically or psychologically by their time in service.

“[Indoor skydiving] makes me want to try things I have been ‘putting off’ in the false belief that I cannot do them.” – Flyer on the night

These events are crucial to support veterans & their families but sadly cannot happen without companies taking an active role to help the cause.

The main benefit that indoor skydiving has is that boost in confidence it gives, either inside the wind tunnel or in everyday life.

“Get amongst it!!! Don’t hesitate for a moment or think you can’t do it even if you’re afraid of heights it’s AhhMazing!” – Soldier On flyer

Helping our wounded warriors has always been a cause close to the heart of Indoor Skydive Australia Group, who own and operate iFLY’s in Sydney, Gold Coast & Perth.  Founders Wayne Jones and Danny Hogan are both veterans having served on multiple operations.

“After serving in the Military for over 20 years, it is important to remain connected through events like the one being held by Soldier On” said ISA Group CEO, Wayne Jones.

“Organisations that help support returned veterans are vital and it is an honour to be able to contribute in this small way”.  Indoor Skydive Australia Group Ltd listed on the ASX in 2013 under the code ASX:IDZ.

iFLY looks forward to hosting similar events for Soldier On in future.

Soldier On offers assistance is open to anyone who has served in the Army, Navy, Air Force, Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Australian Federal Police or the Department of Immigration and Border Protection and are having difficulty adjusting.

For further information, visit: – https://www.soldieron.org.au/

For further information on Indoor Skydive Australia: https://xrgroup.com.au