World Skydiving Center

How many times have World Skydiving Center planes crashed during skydiving operations since 2018?

Answer:

Once.  After having flown a load of skydivers to their point of exit over the drop zone, a plane that was owned and operated by World Skydiving Center, Jacksonville, FL, crashed into a nearby neighborhood on its return flight to the airport. 

Images of the totaled plane and first responders working the scene of the crash can be seen in the collage at the bottom of this page. 

You, Mike Doke, the owner and primary tandem instructor for World Skydiving Center in Jacksonville, Florida, have a reputation as being a dishonest and unprofessional drug user, who flagrantly and repeatedly violates federal and state laws, FAA (Federal Aviation Administration) regulations, and USPA (United States Parachute Association) requirements.

You have routinely demonstrated that you cannot be trusted to follow the rules that keep skydivers safe. 

Why would anyone trust you with their life?

Answer: 

Good question... 

What does/ did the term "bus stuff" refer to at World Skydiving Center, Jacksonville?

Answer: 

"Bus stuff" is in reference to the school bus that was (is?) parked on the back of airport property that skydivers use to get drunk and high outside of the view of customers. When someone uses the term "bus stuff", it is in reference to drugs and alcohol and the ongoing, daily use of these substances at this business (before, during, and after business hours) by skydivers, students, customers, tandem instructors, AFF instructors, and the owner, Mike Doke. The term is not limited to the use of these substances in any past or currently existing bus, but rather the use of alcohol and drugs, of both the legal and illegal varieties, anywhere on the property that happens to be convenient. 

Want to go skydiving and get blitzed?  World Skydiving Center is the place to do it!

When you are paid, as a USPA licensed rigger, to complete a reserve repack, or you sign off on completing a reserve repack for your tandem and loaner skydiving gear, do you always actually complete the repack?  

Answer:

No.  Mike Doke has expressed that, despite being paid for a reserve repack, at times, when he completed the prior repack, he does not bother to complete the next repack, but simply signs the record.  He has stated that it is more wear and tear on the reserve to repack it repeatedly, as the law requires, and so he simply collects his fee and returns the reserve to the skydiver without having actually done the repack that the customer paid for. 

What is a hop n' pop n'  pop?

Answer:

A hop n' pop is a jump from a low altitude (usually 5,000 feet) that is named because you hop (out of the plane) and immediately pull (pop) your canopy.  Failing to hop and almost immediately pop has the potential to end in a fairly quick splat, although if one's AAD is on and functioning, the reserve should deploy even if the skydiver fails to open their main canopy.

A hop n' pop n' pop is in reference to a jump where the skydiver hops out of the plane at a low altitude, pops their canopy, and then, pops open the can of beer they have brought with them for the plane ride and the jump.  The skydiver then consumes the entire can of beer before they land, being careful to fly in the correct wind direction so as to not spray beer all over themselves. Successfully completing this skill requires a low altitude jump, low altitude open, and full consumption of a can of beer prior to landing.  

Note: Bottles of beer are discouraged, as the occasional klutzy skydiver will drop their beer from a few thousand feet. Hitting a person on the ground with a can of beer, as opposed to a glass bottle, is the more preferred outcome.

When a skydiver at World Skydiving Center, Jacksonville wishes Mike Doke "Happy Birthday" and it is not September, what does this mean? 

Answer:  

This is a phrase used at World Skydiving Center, Jacksonville, that is a congratulatory term referencing the attractiveness of the female skydiving customer who will be seated in the tandem instructor's lap for the 20 minute plane ride. It is skydiver jargon that is roughly equivalent to a verbal high-five.   

In the event that I, the skydiving tandem customer, am injured during the flight or skydive, do you consent to turn over all SD cards in all cameras that recorded the incident (most importantly, all SD cards in the hand cameras that are attached to the instructor's wrist), immediately upon landing, so that the video recording and photos of my jump and resulting injury are not unfortunately "lost" ?

Tip: Avoid sounding overly informed prior to your jump; World Skydiving Center will refuse service to anyone, for any reason, and openly expressing legal concerns about your safety is potential grounds for being immediately denied the experience of skydiving at World Skydiving Center and for potentially being banned from the premises.  Transparency is not particularly welcomed at this drop zone. 

Answer:

If your skydive instructor refuses to commit to ensuring that you will receive the full, unedited recording of your jump, immediately, in the event that your personal safety was compromised during your skydiving experience, take the following steps:

1. If you were injured during your jump, upon landing, inform your tandem instructor that, regardless of fault, if you do not immediately receive a copy of your skydive videos and pictures, you will be contacting a personal injury attorney within 24 hours.  As soon as the instructor is out of your sight, the evidence of your injury becomes at risk for compromise, so if physically able to do so, secure video and picture footage before your instructor exits your landing area.

2. If possible, confirm the brand name of the rig (the backpack type device from which the parachute is deployed and which the instructor will still be wearing when you land).  It will most likely be either a Strong or Sigma branded tandem system. If you forget to do this, no biggie, you are free to contact both companies regarding the competency and integrity of a tandem instructor that operates with a rating earned under their business name.  

3. Inform your instructor that you will be filing a complaint with either (or both) United Parachute Technologies (Sigma Tandem System) or with Strong Enterprises (Strong Tandem System) to report the incident and to request a review of Mike Doke's license and ratings as both a tandem instructor himself and as an instructor for other future tandem skydive providers.  As the owner of World Skydiving Center, he is accountable for any injuries that occur on the property, regardless of whether or not he was the tandem instructor that caused your injury.

Contact Information:

United Parachute Technologies (Sigma Tandem System)

 1645 Lexington Avenue
DeLand, Florida. 32724

Phone: (386) 736-7589

https://uptvector.com/contact/

Strong Enterprises (Strong Tandem System)

6448 Pinecastle Blvd. Suite 104

Orlando, FL 32809

Phone: (407) 859-9317

https://strongparachutes.com/Company

4. Next, contact the United States Parachute Association (USPA) and report the incident. Request a review of both Mike Doke's USPA license, ratings, and other credentials, as well as a review of World Skydiving Center's status as a USPA Drop Zone. 

Contact Information:

United States Parachute Association (USPA)

5401 Southpoint Centre Blvd.

Fredericksburg, VA 22407

Phone: (540) 604-9740

https://uspa.org/

5. As a final step, contact the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and request a business review and onsite inspection of World Skydiving Center so as to ensure that World Skydiving Center is fully compliant with all federally mandated safety regulations.  This helps to ensure that no one else is injured in the future from a safety "oversight" that your report could have helped to prevent. 

Contact Information:

Federal Aviation Administration (FAA)

800 Independence Avenue, SW
Washington, DC 20591 

Phone:  1-866-TELL-FAA (1-866-835-5322)

https://faasafety.gov/support/Submit.aspx

If submitting the online form through the FAA website...

• Visit FAA agency link: https://faasafety.gov/support/Submit.aspx 
• Select from the dropdown menu option "Compliment or Complaint"
• Include the name and address of World Skydiving Center and a brief description of the incident and any injuries you sustained.
• For ease of reference, World Skydiving Center contact info is provided below:

World Skydiving Center

9300 Normandy Blvd., Suite 400

Jacksonville, FL 32221

(904) 250-5903

jumpjax@worldskydivingcenter.com

OR

World Skydiving Center

3990 Centurion Way

Fernandina Beach, FL 32034

(904) 661-8706

jumpamelia@worldskydivingcenter.com

worldskydivingcenter.com

Business Owner: Mike Doke

Why does my skydiving video only show clouds, with no visual of the ground, when we exited the plane or for the entire first part of my jump?

Answer:

If your video shows only clouds, with no visual of the ground as you left the plane, this means that your instructor jumped into and through clouds.  This is a violation of federal law; however, because it is difficult for the FAA to definitively determine if a skydiver did actually jump through clouds, the video of your skydive is the proof required to file a complaint.  

This rule is Federal Aviation Regulation 105.17 and is also addressed under the USPA Basic Safety Requirements as " “No skydive may be made in violation of the FAA [Federal Aviation Administration] regulations.”  

Skydivers are not legally allowed to jump through clouds for several reasons. 

First, when exiting a plane without being able to see the ground, a skydiver cannot visually confirm that they are over the proper landing area.  This could potentially result in landing in the river, the ocean, a parking lot, or, if you're lucky, maybe you can drop in on a Jags game accidentally!

Second, when a skydiver cannot see the ground beneath them due to cloud cover, they also cannot see anything else that happens to also be in the same cloud at a lower altitude.  Landing on top of a bird might just hurt a bit, but landing on top of another plane is an excellent way to become propeller confetti or simply a dead skydiver. 

When an instructor jumps out of a plane with a tandem student when he cannot see the ground, this is because he has judged that the cost of aborting the jump, returning to the airport, landing the plane with skydivers aboard, and then re-doing the jump on a less cloudy day will significantly impact the profit that he earns compared to that which is generated from a single flight and a jump through clouds.  The risk associated with violating federal law and possibly injury or death of both the tandem instructor and the tandem skydiver is perceived as being less important than the reward of profiting off the tandem customer.

Does your skydiving video show only clouds and no ground visibility when you exited the plane? Is a large portion of your skydive video composed of only clouds with no ground visibility until near the middle or end of free fall? You may be entitled to further action. 

Complaints can be filed directly with the FAA at: https://hotline.faa.gov/

On the first page of the FAA Hotline Reporting Form, select "I am a passenger or traveler." 

On the second page, select the last option "Other- None of the above, proceed to safety hotline web form."

The third page, "Safety Hotline Form", will require the following information:

WHAT Are You Reporting?

Event Location: World Skydiving Center- Herlong Airport

Event City: Jacksonville

(Flight information can be left blank.)

WHO Are You Reporting?

First Name: Mike

Last Name: Doke

Email:  jump@worldskydivingcenter.com

Company/Organization: World Skydiving Center (Jumpstart Skydiving, LLC)

Street Address: 9300 Normandy Blvd., Suite 400  

City: Jacksonville

State: FL

Zip: 32221

Phone: 904-250-5903 

Web Address: https://worldskydivingcenter.com/

You can then include a description of your experience and a link to your skydiving video to support your concerns.

The United States Parachute Association (USPA) Skydiver's Information Manual (SIM) requires that "tandem instructors must have at least 200 tandem skydives before any camera device may be used, held or attached to the tandem instructor or tandem student" (SIM Section 2-1 G, 2020-2121; 2016-2017)*.

Why do you, Mike Doke, the owner of World Skydiving Center, Jacksonville, FL, not require that all of your tandem instructors actually be in compliance, at all times, with this major safety rule?

Answer:

You'll have to ask Mike Doke, owner of World Skydiving Center, himself.  

*Skydiver's Information Manual (SIM) published by the USPA and available at: https://uspa.org/SIM/2#1G

How many hours has it been since you last consumed alcohol, drugs, or both?

Answer:

Hopefully, at least 8-12 hours, but you'll have to confirm with Mike Doke, owner and instructor, at World Skydiving Center, Jacksonville, FL.