About Us

Learn about the story behind Piedmont Skydiving, and why we do what we do!

Our Story

Piedmont opened in 2010. Jim, our founder, was tired of making an hours-long commute every weekend to skydive. He wanted a beautiful place to jump, and he wanted it to be closer to his Charlotte home–so he decided to take matters into his own hands and open a new dropzone on Rowan County Airport. Its close proximity to Charlotte, its views and its friendly people sealed the deal.

Jim did a great job building the facility and the skydiving community at Piedmont. We’re really grateful to Jim for kicking off the Piedmont phenomenon and getting us started off on such a great foot. In 2015, when Jim was ready to take off on a new adventure, he sold the dropzone to its current owner–his skydiving buddy, Dan McNulty.

Dan has been an active sport skydiver since 2004. He first came to North Carolina that same year, while serving in the Marine Corps. He spent five years of that service–from 2004 to 2009–at Camp Lejeune, with the 2nd Recon Battalion and 2nd Marine Special Operations Battalion.

Dan had always planned on opening up his own DZ someday, and Jim was instrumental in helping Dan start his first dropzone–Skydive the Wasatch, in Utah. Dan proudly opened Skydive the Wasatch in 2014. It was such a success–the perfect fulfillment of a lifelong dream–that Dan immediately wanted to expand to other areas. He was secretly thinking of North Carolina, as that was a natural choice. After all, he’d been living there on and off for a decade.

One day between jumps, Jim jokingly asked Dan if he wanted to buy another DZ. Jim was a little surprised when Dan pretty-much-instantly said yes, but it meant that the DZ would stay among like-minded friends. Jim can still be found at the DZ on most weekends, flying one of our four Cessna 182s. He might even be your Tandem Instructor.

The Piedmont story is still being written! We’re growing every year, and we perform thousands of safe skydives annually. We’d love for you to be a part of the cast of characters.

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  • Rell Howie Avatar
    Rell H.
    They kept it so sweet and simple and direct. A few jokes to make your first time less stressful. The teamwork and communication between themselves let me know they were a real team. Thank you guys for that awesome experience. I’ll be back…… oh and only thing I recommend is teach people how to pop their ears before you go in the air lol that’ll be a great tip for starters. Thank you again
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    2 years ago
  • Jessica Holsinger Avatar
    Jessica H.
    Absolutely amazing experience and would 1000% recommend everyone jump with Piedmont!! My husband and I jumped for our first time and had such a blast we signed up to do it again before we left! Everyone was very friendly, helpful and fun. Shout out to Derek, best tandem partner ever!!
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    4 years ago
  • Carla Henderson Emerson Avatar
    Carla H.
    The thrill of jumping is hard to put into words. So much adrenaline! Derek was great to work with. He made me feel completely safe and ensured I had a great experience. Free fall was exhilarating and once the parachute was out the view was spectacular and incredibly peaceful. Derek pointed out all of the landmarks and city skylines around us which made the view even more profound. We can’t wait to jump again.
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    4 years ago
  • Nancy Romo Avatar
    Nancy R.
    Best experience ever! Instructors are very experienced. Really nice and fun people. They definitely add to the experience. Also picture and video package is pricey but worth it. 100% recommended. I'll be probably doing it again.
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    3 years ago
  • L Raby Avatar
    L R.
    Had a blast. Everyone was so kind and willing to go the extra mile to help especially for a first timer. Would definitely jump again
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    2 years ago