pilotdave

Although I agree that the idea is kind of dumb and wouldn't work the way described, it's not totally unrealistic either. Most airliners have autopilots capable of fully automated, hands off landings. All they need really is a panic button which the pilot (or maybe even someone on the ground) could hit which would automatically cause the autopilot to land the plane at the nearest properly sized airport. I don't think having a "take control away from the pilot permanently" button is such a good idea, but it could prevent 9/11 type hijackings. In the future, disconnecting the pilot from the equation after he hits the button will become easier and easier as more planes are developed with fly by wire controls. On a 777 for example, I'm sure the entire cockpit could simply be disconnected from the rest of the plane if they wanted. Computer flown airliners are coming. I think at this point flying and landing have become easy for computers.... it's taxiing and taking off that are harder for computers to do. Dave http://www.skydivingmovies.com

Lotta videos, isn't it? I've been UPLOADING the whole thing to its new home (thanks AndyMan!). Only getting about 13 to 20 kb/s so it's taking a while. Now I know how all of you feel! Hopefully the new site will be faster (I think I've had my bandwidth cut down). I'll be running it for about another month, then we'll switch over to the new one. The URL will stay the same. Thanks, and keep checking back for uploads. Dave http://www.skydivingmovies.com

Ummm... Dont PM it, just post it. There might be a few guys that would like to find out too.

Well, technically if the beer is in return for the flight, it's illegal. Don't think you're gonna find too many FAA guys calling anyone on that though! Back in the olden days when I used to fly (last year), I used to love taking skydivers flying (and not letting em jump out). Nobody is more amused by landing than a skydiver! Dave http://www.skydivingmovies.com

Yep... I've been just about 10 miles north of DC for 4 years now and I've never done the white house but I've done Air and Space a bunch of times. I think I'm due for another visit too. Dave http://www.skydivingmovies.com

I have a Bev suit, a protec and a Z1, and an alti 3. I think I would have been better off with an FT-50, althought the alti3 has been changed recently so some of the things I don't like about mine may have changed. First of all, I hate the big elastic ring like everyone else. I usually wear gloves just so the altimeter fits me better, but I made my last couple jumps without them. I stick 3 fingers through the ring with no gloves on (2 with gloves). The rubber is pretty hard and has a little sharp edge around the middle which is quite uncomfortable. I have small wrists, so the wristband is WAY too long for me. I guess I could probably cut it shorter but I'd rather not mess with it. With no gloves I have to find creative ways to take up the slack so it doesnt whip me. Other than comfort though, the FT-50 has other advantages. I believe this has changed in the new alti3s, but the FT-50 has a field replacable lens and the alti, when i bought it, didnt. If i break the lens it's gotta go back to the factory to get fixed. Also a lot of people have mentioned the lifetime warranty. I could be wrong but I think when i got mine it was only a 10 year warranty. Pretty good still, but its not the same as lifetime (according to my plans anyway). The FT-50 had a bigger face and larger numbers, but the new alti's are about the same I think. For the jumpsuit, I like my Bevsuit but it's all I've used so I can't really compare it to anything. For helmets, you might want to start with something cheap then decide what you might want. If you know you want a fullface, I've never heard anything bad about the oxygen. I like my Z1 so far but we'll see how it is down the road. If you don't know if you want an RW style helmet or freefly style, go with a protec or something to start and decide later. Hope this helps, Dave http://www.skydivingmovies.com

Yep, mine has about an inch of slack in it and the kill line is stretched tight. Definitely a problem and I'm quite mad that a rigger sold it to me this way. I wish someone would write an article, or some kind of document, with all kinds of tips like this for inspecting gear. I'm learning more and more, but I don't know what to be looking for on most parts of my rig. When I can't trust an experienced rigger to inspect it properly, I'd like to know how to do it myself (without becoming a rigger). Dave http://www.skydivingmovies.com

you're welcome. Oh wait, I have no idea what you're talking about. Oh well. Dave http://www.skydivingmovies.com

Heard about the new Sport Pilot License that should be coming along soon? Might just make stuff like this possible for a lot of people. Basically it'll be a minimal pilot's license that'll let people fly homebuilt or even factory built, two seat, light aircraft. Dave http://www.skydivingmovies.com

Wow, excellent advice. Tried the test and the apex is nowhere near the skirt. It's inches above. The end of the hackey handle doesnt even reach the level of the skirt. The support tape goes in the same direction as the lines of the mesh, not 45 degrees to it. You're saying this is improperly made? Do all "real" parachute manufacturers install the support tape 45 degrees to the mesh? Do I have some sort of homemade pilot chute? There doesn't seem to be any kind of tag or marking to tell me who made it. Watching the pilot chute as i pull it down through the air and let it inflate, I can CLEARLY see that the apex falls below the skirt. Until my incident, I wouldn't have know this is unsafe. The rigger I bought my rig from gave me a one year warranty on everything. If he hadn't been evicted from the DZ and his house, I'd get my money back. I am quite shocked he sold me potentially (or definitely) unsafe equipment. The good news is he's gone now and I don't have to deal with him anymore. Thanks for the info! I'm sure I'm not the only person relying on posts like this to keep me safe in the future. Keep it up! Dave Dave http://www.skydivingmovies.com

This isn't much help because I don't know any details, but a guy at my DZ had a baglock last year. Weeks later they found his main, still in the bag. According to the rigger that told me about it, it was caused by a tubestow that didn't break when a rubber band would have. If anyone is really curious about what happened I guess I could give ya his email address. I've never seen anyone using tubestoes so I don't know anything about them, but I'm staying away from them. By the way, anyone bought rubber bands from square3 at cross keys? I bought a bag of the little ones and they break REALLY easily. I've broken a few just pulling them tight when I'm replacing a broken one. Replacing them often is annoying but it seems to me that being too easy to break is better than being to hard to break. Dave http://www.skydivingmovies.com

...and installation of the jump door. right?

0:2:0ish Dunno if I really owe any beer but my club brought a keg of Killians to the DZ last night so I'd say I'm payed up. Dave http://www.skydivingmovies.com

I can imagine some bad things that could happen, and I did get flipped onto my back which coulda been bad, but doesn't cutting away and pulling the reserve also open up a lot of possibilities for bad stuff like entaglements? The pilot chute in tow is just one of those malfunctions that it seems like we're taught to just hope it goes away. Nobody ever taught me to yank the bridle (although I read about it being done), but it seems to be a more "proactive" way of dealing with it than just cutting away (or just pulling the reserve). It's interesting that I chose to do it that way though. I never actually THOUGHT about reaching for the bridle. I just did it. I didn't really realize I had done it until after it was done. Dunno if that's a good reflex or a bad one, but I'm pretty happy now! Dave http://www.skydivingmovies.com

How ironic... My first jump after posting a fake picture of myself with a "PC" in tow, I had myself a real life pilot chute in tow. Always wondered exactly what I could/would do in that situation. Everything happened so fast I barely had time to think about it. I didn't cut away. I reached back, grabbed my bridle, and yanked. The bag came right out, but I flipped over on my back so I watched it come off. Canopy opened with enough linetwists that I could't look up, but that was fine with me. Linetwists cleared themselves and I landed normally. I had originally pulled at 3500. First time I looked at my altimeter I was at 2000 but I had been under canopy for a little while at that point. It's hard to judge but i'd guess the whole PC in tow lasted no more than 3 seconds. I talked to the DZO about it and he suggested that maybe I need a new pilot chute. He checked the tightness of my closing loop and it was fine (after I repacked). I did one more jump, had a kinda delayed opening... But it opened again with linetwists (probably my body position as I turned to see what was happening that time). After that I brought it straight to the most experienced rigger there and he found the problem right away. My kill line had shrunk (I bought it used), so the PC wasnt inflating fully. The center of the PC, where the handle is, gets pulled down too far. Cost to replace the kill line: $15. I think I can afford that. Dave http://www.skydivingmovies.com

one more thing I should add. An advantage of the parachute over the camera is that it'll survive falling out of a plane. The camera wont. Ya never know, it could happen. Dave http://www.skydivingmovies.com

Well this is an easy one. Ya know you can go get one of those little disposable cameras for a few dollars? Why spend $1000? A camera's a camera.

think he knows we can all see his kiddie porn? (directory listings are enabled...) I know the guy in the video is Per Eriksson (or PerFlare). He emailed me once about having the video on my server. Who's Andre? Dave http://www.skydivingmovies.com

I learned the one hand per handle method before my first jump, then the 2 handed method before my second jump (at a different DZ). I liked their reasoning for using the two hands per handle method so I stuck with it. It's clearly slower, so it's definitely not ideal. But it does prevent the possibility (sorta) of a student pulling the wrong handle if, for example, their right hand slipped off the cutaway pillow and they didnt realize. After trying cutaways in a hanging harness (never used a real hanging harness for AFF, just one you lean into), I realized just how long those cutaway cables are. I like having a free hand to clear them away and make sure both come all the way out. I haven't had a cutaway, so I dunno how well that method would actually work. The only thing that worries me at all is finding the reserve handle. With my Z1 on, I can barely see my handles even when i put my chin on my chest so I'd mostly be feeling for it. Then again, I use an RSL so theoretically by the time I even find the handle I'll have a reserve over my head. Dave http://www.skydivingmovies.com

Although I agree that I get a whole lot more from the AOPA than USPA, I think it's comparing apples and oranges. I'm a USPA member because I have to be. I'm voluntarily an AOPA member. The USPA, as far as I see it, isn't there to promote skydiving as much as regulate it. It's all in the name of safety of course. I don't think skydiving would be the same sport it is today if it weren't for the USPA keeping us safe by regulating what we can and can't do, and through education. AOPA is all about fighting for the rights of general aviation. They have no need to make rules or force membership. The FAA takes care of all that. Sure, the FAA sets the official rules for skydiving too, but those rules are minimal, basically for ensuring the safety of the planes sharing our airspace. AOPA is for allowing GA pilots to do what they want with minimal restrictions. USPA is for regulating what skydivers can do so the sport is as safe as possible and has a good public image. Dave http://www.skydivingmovies.com

Think the weight of a 747's wings aren't taken into account for it's wingloading? It's the same thing with a canopy... It's gotta generate enough lift to match your weight plus it's own weight. Dave http://www.skydivingmovies.com

hehe... i don't mess with faces much anymore... i learned a while ago that people get PISSED when the see their face on someone else's body... but sometimes i cant hold myself back.

Ya'll knew it had to be done....

Moved it to the freefly folder by the way. Great video. Dave http://www.skydivingmovies.com

My birthday in march kinda sucked too. Didn't do anything too fun or anything. I did get one jump in the next day though. But my friends really made it up to me a couple weeks later when the present they had ordered for me arrived. They found the email address of someone else in my skydiving club and asked for some advice on a skydiving related present. They ended up buying me a video (quincy), t-shirt, and wallet from square1. I couldn't believe they were so thoughtful. It was just so nice. Dave http://www.skydivingmovies.com