Bill Morrissey D-516 is one of the “fathers” of tandem skydiving. He got the “bug” to jump as a young paratrooper in the 82nd Airborne Division and made his first free-fall in 1959. He worked as a US Nationals training judge, before there was such a formal program and competed in style and accuracy in 1964 and 1966. In 1982, he went to Florida to persuade Ted Strong to build parachutes big enough to take two adults. The company designed a dual-passenger system still in use today. After two jumps, Strong hired Morrissey as an instructor of first-time passengers, an instructor examiner, and the company’s program director. He has taught more than 650 tandem instructors and 113 tandem examiners while making 3300 tandem jumps. One of Morrissey’s best-known accomplishments was the study of the “Tandem Side-Spin Phenomenon.” Bill has continued to work with all the tandem manufacturers in further developing equipment and training techniques.
