Crossword Genius

Practical direction for parachutist (4,2,5)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

down to earth

I'm a little stuck... Click here to teach me more about this clue!

'practical' is the definition.
(I've seen this before)

'direction for parachutist' is the wordplay.
I cannot really see how this works, but
'direction' could be 'w' (W is an example) and 'w' is found within the answer.
'for' could be 'to' (eg both can mean 'in the opinion of') and 'to' is located in the answer.
This may be the basis of the clue (or it may be nonsense).

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for down to earth that I've seen before include "Plain-speaking" , "Plain" , "astronauts will want to get back here" , "way to lay out on ground" , "Unlikely to be silly" .)

I've seen this clue in the Sydney Morning Herald.
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