obelixtim

There are videos of other containers exhibiting similar behavior. I think you overestimate the drag of a pilot chute at subterminal and overestimate the lever arm of a bridle exiting to the side of an inverted jumper. -Mark I've had quite a few sub terminal openings and never had a problem with the pilot chute extracting the bag, including a couple, while not on my back, were pretty much vertical, making the angle of pull quite sharp. If the pilot chute can't do that job properly, even sub terminal, where the snatch force isn't great, it is not suitable for use. I'd replace it. This is a life or death issue. No point having a reserve, if all it does is get you to the scene of impact a bit quicker. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

Pretty much. Modern student canopies are pretty slow and docile. If you land in half brakes, no flare at all, all you need to do is fall over and you should be fine. That doesn't mean that you can't get hurt. Some students land bad for a variety of reasons. A decent PLF may or may not save you. If you are that concerned, there are ways of learning to do it better. The "parkour" guys are really good at it. Most martial arts also teach how to fall well. Or just find higher and higher stuff to jump off of. Chair, then a table, then a ladder, on up. If you can take an 8 or 10 foot drop and PLF out of it well, you should be fine. Busting a leg jumping off a table doesn't sound half as good later at the pub. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

I would say SL is safer....its a simpler type of jump, less to process for the jumper equals better awareness levels. Progression is in smaller, easier to manage stages. Also, its cheaper, and a SL student can be jumping when AFF students are grounded due to cloud cover. Once out the door, you are on your own, more so if your radio fails. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

All rigs will have a date of manufacture stamped on them somewhere....the main, reserve and H&C all have their own data panels. Thats your starting point. The most important components are the Harness and Container and the reserve. Its pretty obvious if the H&C have been thrashed, even to the inexperienced. The reserve comes with a data card, which documents its age and service life, and the rigger will have his own records, all pretty easy to access, and its life has been pretty well controlled. Fakery doesn't really work with with reserves. As for the main canopy, ya pays your money, ya take your chances. Even then, it could have started life as a bedsheet!!! You can still compare a main canopy with others you see on the DZ to get an idea of how well it has been cared for. Ask around especially jumper who have similar/same types of rigs. And be sure your rig is compatible with your experience level. But yes, your rigger is the go to man. The older and more grizzled, the better. Beer will loosen his tongue. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

Rigs are tested every day, in a whole lot of different situations. Most rigs are designed and built based on a background of what has gone before, what works and what doesn't. A lot of that involves formal testing, modifications and improvements. Most testing is done by jumpers themselves, on DZs around the world and involve hundreds of thousands of jumps. No formal test scheme in the world can replicate that. The rigs also have to pass the scrutiny of riggers around the world, most of whom are well trained and fairly heads up when it comes to identifying and fixing problems, and this is because they are the ones who pack reserves and pass them as serviceable. They have their own reputation to protect, as well as their conscience, when they take on the responsibility of peoples lives. Rigs or components that don't do the job are identified and discarded, usually driven by market forces. Go back in time and you will find anything that becomes known as a dog, or a "death rig" quickly disappears from the market. In this case, the problems are fairly easy to identify, and are fairly easily solved, as several posters on here have pointed out. I think the manufacturer does have a problem here, and I would expect him to take some measures to rectify things, as reputations, once destroyed, are very difficult to recover. If riggers start refusing to pack these rigs, because of a perceived design flaw, that will be the end of it. It is an area of concern, for sure. I would be having a close look at the design of the reserve container, because it is not on for the reserve to stay in the container, when the pilot chute has cleared cleanly, even in a back to earth scenario. That said, no rig in the world can be 100% fool proof, and it is a measure of how good rigs are generally, that there are quite a few fools out there jumping them safely. As far as your list of test criteria go, the first four are irrelevant to this situation, they became even more so when we progressed from silk canopies to nylon. And that was a long time ago. As for the rest of your post, most of your ideas would be of limited use, simply because it is impossible to replicate the huge variety of conditions and situations rigs are exposed to thousands of times on the DZ. And the FAA? They won't touch this with a barge pole. Not their remit or area of expertise. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

Skydiving, as we know, can be the best experience of your life......peace, love and mung beans, if you like. It can also be instantly brutal. Its why it can be termed an extreme sport....emotions can range from the very best to the very worst. That's the reality. Its why every jumper needs to be at the top of their game, on every jump. You need to embrace the good as well as the bad, and learn from it all. It will help keep you alive. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

Skydiving odds don't work that way. Maybe I was lucky and got it done on jump #6. But it was a high speed horse shoe, so I didn't have any choice, or time to worry about it. At the time I was too busy to be scared about it. It did give me a lot of confidence though. I know guys with thousands of jumps who have never had a cutaway, and I know that it is still a small niggle in the back of their minds. Another mate had 5 in his first hundred jumps..... My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

Somewhere up ahead, there is a time which will come to every one of us.....the moment of death. What we are doing at that time is irrelevant. So why worry about it beforehand? If its not your time, you will be OK. Lots of people die in bed. C'est la vie. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

Cutting away is no big deal. It is the safest thing to do if you have any doubt about your main. That is why we train people to do EPs. Trust your reserve. If you are afraid to cut away and use your reserve, do not get in the plane. EVER! Skydiving is not for you. I have a friend with over a hundred cutaways, most of them test jumps, but quite a few real malfunctions. Another has over 25 cutaways from real mals. He doesn't hesitate. Neither should you. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

You are not the first, and won't be the last. Fear is not a problem. Its natural. Its instinctive.....your body is telling you falling is dangerous. Your brain knows you can handle it. Knowledge dispels fear, and you know what to do. You've done 9 jumps, More than 99% of humans. You obviously handled them well, so why should it now be a problem? Line twists are not a major problem. Stick to what you've been trained to do and you'll be fine. It sounds like you are not confident in your gear. Get an instructor to go through the gear with you, how it works, and what is worth worrying about. Practice a few EPs. Then go and jump. You will enjoy it. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

Carelessness and skydiving - not a good mix. Complacency and skydiving - not a good mix. Can easily result in death. How long does it take to do a line check? Give yourself an uppercut! My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

Pffffttt, skydivers are so soft these days. Back in the day we would have made the circle out of broken glass, or poured fuel on the ground and got someone to torch it when we were on final.... Sharpens your accuracy skills quick smart! My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

Darwin is always looking for new award candidates.... My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

Social media is your friend. Name and shame. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

What then would be a better way to determine readiness? An official camera flying qualification - something akin to an AFFI qualification with in air evaluation as well as a written exam... You could put yourself forward for it with 50 or 100 jumps AND a recommendation from your ST&A. The course would need to be something that tests in-air skills and awareness, as well as camera skills to actually get a decent shot. You're teaching someone to be a camera flyer. It's not just a couple of jumps with a coach to get the rating. Have 2 levels, one that qualifies you for fun jumping with a small form factor video camera, and another for professional tandem photography that involves a stills camera. I think the technical differences might require that. I'd get rid of the idea of 'just putting a camera on for me' being different to 'proper videography', and lump it all into a serious 'camera work' qualification. Either you do it right or you don't fly camera, but when you DO have it, then you should be good to fly with freefall teams, CRW dogs or tandems (other prerequisites not withstanding) I'd do it in this formal manner so that the training syllabus would be consistent across dropzones and steer away for the 'mentoring' way of doing it which could lead to massively variable results. Yeah, I had that in mind, but I was really looking for an answer from the perspective of someone like Tred who has a relatively low number of jumps. That cohort seems to be the one with a problem about jump numbers. A bit quick on the trigger mate! My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

What then would be a better way to determine readiness? My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

If it damages components, would it not be violating any TSOs on the gear? Does it invalidate any warranty on the rig? What testing process has it been through, and what data is available from those tests? Could be complicated legal problems if it has not been approved by the manufacturer for use on his gear. Has it even been thought through properly? if, as has been said, flaws were pointed out but no f**** were given My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

For the skydiver who doesn't have time for pin checks.... Skydivers are just so busy these days!!! How did we ever cope? My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

By who? The mad skillz 100 jump wonder who doesn't know what he doesn't know? Or by hundreds of DZOs/STA's around the world? Just because you say so, doesn't make it valid. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

Sharp edge on the grommet? My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

Its a waste of time engaging a couple of people with low time in the sport and thus who have never held any positions where they are responsible for the lives of others in the sky, especially those, as history has proved, are of low experience. I think we have a couple of trolls here who are just trying to get bites. Skydiving is ruthless on those who are unprepared, inexperienced or just stupid. It makes sense to impose arbitrary limits on some activities as a starting point on the learning curve. Its a pretty successful approach when dealing with a varied and disparate group of people like skydivers. Bitter experience has shown us that this is the most logical way to deal with inexperience. Low timers don't appear on many reports simply because they are prevented by our limits from taking these risks. I would wager if we removed these limits, the incident rate in this group would increase rapidly. That is not acceptable, so why take the risk? If history has taught us one thing, it is that proceeding with caution is a much better policy rather than the "damn the torpedoes" approach. Slow evolution is far preferable to filling in the craters after the event. Skydiving is dangerous enough anyway, and as one who IS responsible for the lives of others, I prefer to take whatever action mitigates the risks to my clients and friends. To my knowledge, no one has missed out on any fun because of this. Every broken bone I have prevented means something to me, but its not something I can quantify. A broken bone, to the individual though, is a disaster, with effects far beyond the DZ. To the trolls: Maybe the time will come when these limits will be relaxed, and if it can happen, it will. Till then, enjoy all the other bits of skydiving that you can safely. There is plenty of time. If you want to push your agenda, put yourself forward for positions where you can influence events, rather than sitting on the sidelines sniping. We've seen your arguments before....nothing new there. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

Who set these new routes?, and are they set in stone at this point? The justification for the change needs to be challenged strongly. Is it just in Holland or are the routes part of a network that includes the rest of Europe? Because it will take more than a petition to stop this, usually these things are usually proposals at first, which gives a chance for discussion and input from various parties. What it needs is input from local and national politicians, and a strong case has to be made as to why these changes are not necessary...So you need to get the support of all those local businesses, plus the national parachute organisation and national aero club body. I too have been to Teuge, and its a great centre. If it does close, what (if any) is the alternative. I'd be looking to the authorities who made this decision for compensation, and take it through the courts right up to EU level if necessary...so you'll need a fighting fund for that. Its going to be a tough fight, but even if the future looks bleak at the moment, it doesn't mean it can't be won. But you will have to fight hard, and leave nothing in the tank. Good luck. Edited to add: Just looked and signed your petition, but for English speakers, it is very difficult to understand both the wording of the petition, and the confirmation email. You need to get an English version of each one. If it isn't easy to access, you won't get such a good response, and there are a lot of skydivers out there. Signatures from around the world will carry a lot of weight with politicians, and show it is more than just a local issue. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

Some countries do have requirements for using student AADs. Here in the Netherlands our BSR states that if the manufacturer of an AAD has a Student version, that version must be used for the first 25 jumps. And here is an example of whoever wrote the BSR not thinking through all the implications, and painting everyone into a corner. . All the BSR needs to state is "an approved AAD". The word "student" is not necessary. I can see how this happened though, the BSR was probably written before lessons were learnt about possible problems. The BSR could be updated though, and should be. Like that, it still gives operators discretion as to which they use. It doesn't pay to set things down in stone, some BSRs need to be written down in such a way that there is some leeway with interpretation. Every word of a BSR needs to be carefully thought through, and when new information comes to light they need to be amended. Change is constant, and rules need to be updated with change. It then gives the ambulance chasers less rope to hang people with. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

At least the rules will allow for a fair contest next time. The cheats charter will be torn up. It will be good to see the Swiss and Italians back in the game. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

OK, didn't realise that. Around the world requirements for various certificates/licences wouldn't vary much. An A basically tells everyone you are at a level where you should be au fait with the basics and can look after yourself. FAI certificates are generally necessary for international competitions, its basically a rubber stamp operation obtained through national aero clubs. Not a big deal for everyday sport jumping. Not sure why anyone would advise what the OP was asking though. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....