GRUMMAN CHEETAH PLT WAS ADVISED BY ATC THAT HE HAD FLOWN WITHIN 1.5 MI OF PARACHUTE ACTIVITY. NOTAMS WERE CHECKED PRIOR TO FLT; AND NO MENTION WAS MADE OF THIS ACTIVITY.

Narrative

DURING PREFLT BRIEFING ON RTE THERE WERE NO NOTAMS ADVISING OF JUMPERS. EARLIER IN FLT CALLED ATC TO ADVISE I WAS TURNING SEBOUND TOWARDS ZZZ2 FROM ZZZ3. TRIED SEVERAL TIMES AND DIDN'T GET RESPONSE. USED SECOND RADIO TO CONTACT PREVIOUS FREQ ASSIGNED. FIGURED PROB WAS WITH FIRST RADIO. REESTABLISHED CONTACT AND WAS THEN HANDED OFF TO APCH. AS APCHED ABC TURNED EBOUND IN CASE OF JUMPERS WITHIN AREA. I KNEW IT WAS AN AREA FOR JUMPERS FROM PREVIOUS FLTS. AT APPROX POS OF THIS RPT RADIO AGAIN INTERMITTENT. IT WAS THEN I REALIZED IT WAS THE (RECENTLY REPAIRED) HEADSET THAT WAS THE PROB; NOT THE RADIO. I WAS OUT OF COM INTERMITTENTLY ALSO WHEN UNPLUGGED HEADSET TO REPLACE IT WITH ANOTHER HEADSET. COULDN'T ADVISE APCH DUE TO PROB AND AFTER CONNECTED DIDN'T WANT TO TAKE UP AIR-TIME TO EXPLAIN DILEMMA AND MY CONFUSION OVER RADIO SITUATION AS STATED ABOVE. I MAY NOT HAVE HEARD APCH ADVISING OF JUMPERS DUE TO HEADSET PROBS. APCH X INFORMED ME I CAME WITHIN 1.5 MI OF A PARACHUTE JUMP ZONE. APCH INSTRUCTED ME TO TURN ON COURSE TO ZZZ1 ARPT FROM LOCATION ON REVERSE SIDE OF THIS FORM TO AVOID JUMP AREA. APCH ASKED MY EXCUSE FOR NOT FOLLOWING INSTRUCTIONS. TOLD APCH I HAD NO EXCUSE; AS I DIDN'T WANT TO TAKE UP RADIO FREQ TO RELATE. WHEN RECONNECTED WITH APCH CTLR WONDERED WHAT I WAS DOING. FINALLY GOT RESET ON COURSE OF 180 AND ADVISED APCH I WAS GOING TO ZZZ1 CTAF. WHEN MADE CALL ON CTAF; FOR ZZZ1; APCH WAS AGAIN CALLING ME ON COMMON FREQ FOR ZZZ1. AT THIS POINT I WAS INVOLVED WITH HVY AIR TFC AT ZZZ1; SO ESPECIALLY DIDN'T WANT TO TIE UP THE FREQ. APCH DID NOT GIVE A PHONE NUMBER TO CALL. RETURN FLT UNEVENTFUL. HEADSET HAS BEEN RETURNED (AGAIN) TO MANUFACTURER.