slotperfect

Let's keep the other thread going. Arrive Safely John

Nancy Wilson Arrive Safely John

David Gilmour Arrive Safely John

I find it interesting that your first two positive choices are "perfect" (never had a bad spot), and just "OK" (occasional bad spot). The best of spotters have an occasional bad one. In the MFF community we always say "if you've never had a bad spot, you haven't been spotting very long." Bear in mind that we are trained to spot large, fast moving aircraft wearing a rucksack, weapon, and oxygen from very high altitudes (C-130, 130 KIAS, as high as 25K FT). I have been spotting airplanes for a long time - I enjoy it. It's an art that is rapidly fading in our sport because of the debut of GPS spots used by jump planes. There are plenty of people around to teach it, but there are very few opportunities for people to apply it practically in the airplane. We cover it as effectively as we can for students, but attrition of knowledge sets in quickly if they don't apply what they learn. I learned the critical importance of spotting by doing demos with the Golden Knights. Jumping into some very tight places, landing accuracy becomes critically important - and it all starts with a good spot. Interpreting the wind information, making adjustments, and trusting your gut at times. And spotting for a 20-way is much different than spotting for a 2-way - allowing time for the climb-out and allowing more distance for the extra free fall drift. It's both an art and a science . . . Arrive Safely John

Also being discussed in the PIA Riggers Forum: http://riggers.pia.com/tool/post/riggers/vpost?id=1720264&trail=15#2 Arrive Safely John

This is already spinning off into a "to RSL or not to RSL" conversation, which is important but has been discussed at length in several other threads. This thread is about removal of the RSL being legal or not. Please keep this thread on track - feel free to resurrect one of the other RSL debate threads to continue that particular conversation. Thanks, Arrive Safely John

Eso si que es. Arrive Safely John

Terry Urban (councilman24) and I talked about this during PIA - trying to generate more participation in the PIA Riggers Forum. To that end, here are my requests: -If you are a Rigger, and you are not a member of the PIA Riggers Forum, please register so you can contribute to the discussions there. -If you are not a Rigger, but you you frequent the dropzone.com G&R Forum to devour the technical info . . . please frequent the PIA Riggers Forum as well (non-Riggers/non-members are welcome to read all of the posts there). -If you are participating in both forums, please cross-pollinate any good discussions on major issues (e.g. the RSL removal thread) by posting a link to the other forum. Bear in mind that a large percentage of gear manufacturers read these forums, but only some of them actually post here. I don't have a good feel for that dynamic in the PIA Riggers Forum, but since the manufacturers make up the lions share of PIA membership, I would say they likely read those regularly as well. There needs to be a place for strictly technical and regulatory discussions among rigging professionals. The PIA Riggers Forum was designed with that in mind. http://riggers.pia.com/tool/mb/riggers Arrive Safely John

I don't recall! Arrive Safely John

My second one with John (his third) - pictured - was easier to fly. I could feel him making an effort to fly himself. His ability to overcome adversity is a huge example to me. Arrive Safely John

I agree. I always ask if they are ready to skydive right about door opening time. If they say no, or are physically resisting, taking them out of the aircraft against their will at that point opens an opportunity for a lawsuit - especially if they get hurt. I will never take anyone out of an airplane that doesn't want to go. Arrive Safely John

One of my best friends is the local Fire Marshal - 24 years of NC fire service. PM me your email address and I will put you in touch with him so he can answer your questions. Arrive Safely John

Nope. There's an old poll I created kicking around in this forum on just that subject. Arrive Safely John

If the three rings are not properly maintained they can take a set that can make them slow to release in a baglock or other "low-lift" malfunction. UPT says to perform maintenance on any rig with a 3-ring once a month (see attached document). If you have the video of the mal you are talking about, can you post a link? I would like to see it. Arrive Safely John

I have never had a jump refusal (ride the plane down). I have had one or two people become so overwhelmed after exit that they were unresponsive during portions of the canopy ride. I do agree that I would rather stay on the plane and ride it down than exit with a student that has already lost it. One guy told me he was going to be sick - I gave him the sick bag I carry with me, and he began to dry heave into it. At that point he checked out and quit listening to me. During the landing approach I repeatedly told him to grab his legs and pull them up, and he ignored me. Finally, I simply told him that if we landed with his legs hanging down as they were, he stood a good chance of getting hurt. At that point I put mine under his and physically pushed them up and out as much as I could. He met me halfway and got them up plenty far enough for me to set us down safely. Now that I have done that with him and one other student, I feel more confident in my ability to land someone who has either passed out or is completely unresponsive. Arrive Safely John

My rigged weight was about 290 lbs. Arrive Safely John

Twice. The first was an opening at about 16,500 FT; the jump where this quote came from: The second was an opening at about 6000 FT, during which I performed some different turning and descending maneuvers with the canopy. I enjoyed it a great deal. Arrive Safely John

I believe you are correct; my point was that the technologies have already been meshed together. Arrive Safely John

No biggie . . . feel free to ask one of the Moderators via PM next time if you're not sure - we'll point you in the right direction! Arrive Safely John

This was cross-posted in two forums, which is against the Forum Rules. In the future, please choose the best topical forum that fits your subject and post it once. You might also try a forum search first; as others have said this subject has been discussed in much detail by many highly qualified people. This thread is the one that was posted in General Skydiving - it had more replies so I recycled the duplicate in S&T and shifted this one here in its place. Arrive Safely John

Para Flite's PARIS high-glide canopy is essentially a slope-soaring design that has been tuned so it will open successfully from a free fall deployment as high as 25,000 ft MSL. It is built for military applications, carrying up to 400 lbs, and has an L/D of 6:1. On an 18,000 FT HAHO I shifted my flight path over desert river bed and was able to ascend 600 feet and hold altitude for several minutes. The designer and another skilled pilot from Para Flite, exiting over the mountains near Eloy in the afternoon from 18,000 feet were able to stay aloft about 4 hours riding the thermals. Arrive Safely John

Although I heard Bill say that many manufacturers picked up a licensing packet from him during the PIA Symposium, Sun Path and Aerodyne are the only manufacturers to my knowledge that have actually licensed the Skyhook. Sun Path's Javelin/Odyssey is the only H/C besides the V3 that actually offers the Skyhook as an option at this time. Aerodyne's Icon will be close behind: http://www.dropzone.com/cgi-bin/forum/gforum.cgi?post=2673556;search_string=skyhook%20licensing;#2673556 Just so we don't hijack this thread, I resurrected the original thread on this subject from 2004 with an update, and a request that Bill keep us posted as other licensing agreements come to fruition. Let's use that thread for further discussion off the original topic of this thread. http://www.dropzone.com/cgi-bin/forum/gforum.cgi?post=1033295;sb=post_latest_reply;so=ASC;forum_view=forum_view_collapsed; Thanks! Arrive Safely John

Update: Sun Path and Aerodyne are the only manufacturers to my knowledge that have actually licensed the Skyhook. Sun Path's Javelin/Odyssey is the only H/C besides the V3 that actually offers the Skyhook as an option at this time. Aerodyne's Icon will be close behind: http://www.dropzone.com/cgi-bin/forum/gforum.cgi?post=2673556;search_string=skyhook%20licensing;#2673556 I heard Bill say that many manufacturers picked up a licensing packet from him during the PIA Symposium. Bill - can you update us on the list of officially licensed manufacturers as the agreements are made? Arrive Safely John

For specific Neptune related questions email Roger Allen at Alti-2: roger@alti-2.com For specific ParaLog related questions email Klaus Rheinwald: info@paralog.net Or you could post your question in the new Alti-2 Forums: http://forum.altimaster.com/index.php Roger and Klaus are both in there often. Arrive Safely John

Ummm . . . that was "Newfie" You know, from Newfoundland? Arrive Safely John