The present invention relates to a free-fall winch comprising a drum which can be rotatorily driven by a winch drive via a transmission and can be retained by a holding brake, wherein in addition to the holding brake a free-fall brake is provided for slowing down the drum in free-fall operation. According to the invention, the free-fall brake is arranged between winch drive and holding brake on the one hand and drum on the other hand such that when the free-fall brake is open, the drum is decoupled from the winch drive and from the holding brake and can be rotated at idle with respect to the winch drive and the holding brake.