Experience modulates the psychophysiological response of airborne warfighters during a tactical combat parachute jump

•Paratroopers experience affect the psychophysiological response in a parachute jump.•Novels presented a higher heart rate and lactate than experts.•Novels presented a higher cognitive and somatic anxiety and lower self-confident than experts.•Specific fine motor skills and muscle structure were not affected by the parachute jump.

We aimed to analyse the effect of experience level in the psychophysiological response and specific fine motor skills of novel and expert parachute warfighters during a tactical combat parachute jump. We analysed blood oxygen saturation, heart rate, salivary cortisol, blood glucose, lactate and creatinkinase, leg strength, isometric hand-grip strength, cortical arousal, specific fine motor skills and cognitive anxiety, somatic anxiety and self-confident before and after a tactical combat parachute jump in 40 warfighters divided in two group, novel (n = 17) and expert group (n = 23). Novels presented a higher heart rate, lactate, cognitive anxiety, somatic anxiety and a lower self-confident than experts during the jump. We concluded that experience level has a direct effect on the psychophysiological response since novel paratroopers presented a higher psychophysiological response than compared to the expert ones, however this result neither affected the specific fine motor skills nor the muscle structure after a tactical combat parachute jump.