To Become A Rigger...

[Zeppo 0]

...What do I need to do?

I'm in Canada. I there a specific body that I need to contact first? How does it work?

With spring a few months away, I think it'd be great to pack the flood of reserves that will need to be done, and make a few extra bucks while I'm at it.

What goes up, must come DOWN!!!

[kkeenan 14]

Taking a rigging course is really the best way to gain a good overall knowledge of parachute gear, even if you never do any work in that field. It looks like contacting the CSPA office and asking about courses would be the best step.

From Wikipedia:

In Canada, parachute rigger ratings are issued by the Canadian Sports Parachuting Association's Technical Committee. CSPA issues two levels of rigger ratings: A and B. Entry level includes packing ten reserves under supervision then attending a one-week course given by a CSPA Rigger Instructor. Canadian Rigger As are limited to assembling and packing parachutes - for which they are approved. They can replace components and do simple hand-sewing, but are not trained to use sewing machines. At the end of the Rigger A Course, candidates can chose to be tested on round or square parachutes and they can chose which type of container for their practical test (one-pin sport, two-pin sport, Pop-Top or chest. Certification for packing Pilot Emergency Parachutes (PEP) can only be obtained after passing practical tests on all other types. After two more years of experience - including learning sewing machine operation - riggers can challenge for Rigger B ratings. The SOLO program includes sewing a bag of samples and submitting them to CSPA's Technical Committee. CSPA Rigger Bs enjoy the same privileges as American Master Riggers and are allowed to do most major repairs that can be done outside of a factory.

_____________________________________
Dude, you are so awesome...
Can I be on your ash jump ?

[Zeppo 0]

Wikipedia...the source of everything.

Thanks, I'll send CPSA an e-mail.

What goes up, must come DOWN!!!

[kingbunky 3]

...and then send one to the CSPA

i'm pretty sure you need to do 10 reserve repacks before attending the course, under the supervision of a rigger of course. after that it's a week long course that's mostly the theory behind what you do, a lot of stuff on hardware and materials etc. there are a couple of books, the bibles, by dan poynter that you could get your hands on ahead of time as well.

"Hang on a sec, the young'uns are throwin' beer cans at a golf cart."
MB4252 TDS699
killing threads since 2001

[riggerrob 643]

Hee!
Hee!
Thanks for quoting my submission to Wikipedia.

Opinions vary as to whether you should do your ten repacks before attending a CSPA Rigger A Course. Some CSPA Rigger Instructors (i.e. Al MacDonald and Barry McAuley) have seen too many bad habits - taught by uncurrent filed riggers - so they prefer to teach reserve packing during the course. This approach has the disadvantage of delaying testing by several weeks.
On the other hand - I have not seen enough bad habits to be intimidated - so I prefer candidates to arrive with a logbook showing ten repacks (done before the course). This allows me to complete testing on the Saturday and finish the entire process in one week.
This is based on my experience with rigger apprentices who sound really keen, but drop out between the second and third repacks, when they realize how much hard work and attention to detail is required to pack reserves.

Al MacDonald is hosting an RAC - in Alberta - sometime in February 2007. Try contacting Al at Flying High Manufacturing (Claresholm, Alberta).

I am trying to put together a RAC in British Columbia (probably in Pitt Meadows) the first week of March 2007.

[brettski74 0]

Quote

With spring a few months away, I think it'd be great to pack the flood of reserves that will need to be done, and make a few extra bucks while I'm at it.

I'm thinking about getting my rigger's ticket eventually, too, but if your profile is up to date, you may need to hold off on those plans to cash in on that spring rush you envisage. According to the PIM, you need a B licence before you can become a rigger.

[riggerrob 643]

The primary reason that CSPA requires a B Certificate is to ensure that the candidate has sufficient background knowledge.
Sometimes CSPA's Technical Committee will waive that requirement if the candidate has sufficient background knowledge.

For example, I had a 16-year-old candidate arrive at one of my RAC with only one tandem jump. CSPA waived the "B" pre-level for her because she had grown up on DZs with her father - who was a long-time skydiver - and because she had worked as a packer for the last three summers. I was prepared to refund her money the second day, but she stuck it out. Yes, she struggled with some of the material, but we took extra time to ensure that she understood before moving on to the next lecture. She aced the written exam.

[riggerrob 643]

According to the PIM, you need a B license before you can become a rigger.

[brettski74 0]

How do rigger ratings translate across international borders? If you obtained a Rigger A rating in Canada, would you be able to legally work as a Senior Rigger south of the border, or elsewhere, like the UK or Australia? Or do you need to re-obtain the rating under the local system, first?

[riggerrob 643]

Hee!
Hee!
The short answer is NO!

You just asked the $64,000 question.
The problem is that every country has developed its own system - of training and licensing riggers - independent of other nations.
A few other countries copy - too simple - Federal Aviation Administration (American) system, while a few others copy the - too complex - British Parachute Association system.
A few years back a small group started working on the INTERNATIONAL SYSTEM OF RIGGER STANDARDIZATION. The first step involved an Australin mailing out surveys to the dozen or so national skydiving organizations.

Part of the problem is that some countries' rigger rating systems use federal govenrment bureaucracy (i.e. American Federal Aviation Administration) to rate riggers, ergo they are treated like aircraft mechanics. You need zero skydives to become a rigger in the USA.

Other countries (Australia, Britain, Germany, Canada, etc.) approach the task from the opposite direction.
For example, Canadian riggers start by learning to skydive, earn a B Certificate, then attend a Rigger S Course.

The bottom line is that there is no single standard for comparing riggers from different countries.
It will take five or more years for Europeans to agree on one standard and another dozen years for Americans to folow the European lead.
Americans following a European lead????
Hah!
Hah!

Rob Warner
American Master Rigger
Canadian Rigger Instructor
Prufur for one German manufacturer