mark

What information would you provide to a new rigger in solo practice in, say, North Dakota so he could make an informed decision? Please be as specific as possible. Thanks, Mark

Will you count it as a B for the white shack at the bottom, an A for the open lattice-work of the central part of the tower, or an S for the arm? Mark

Just to be clear: are you saying the previous group was at 45, but it wasn't enough? Or that other folks on the airplane thought the group was at 45 but you were using a different method to estimate how long to wait? Mark

Does the turn-around time include the time it takes for a customer to pick up his rig? For example, if a customer says on a Friday evening, "Can I have this tomorrow?" and it's ready the next morning but isn't picked up for a year, would that be 1-day or 1-year turnaround? Mark

Even if true, wearing blue lenses a few minutes at a time several times a day wouldn't be "constantly", would it? Mark

As does SSK's Sweethog, though rubber band instead of bungee. Mark

and because some "riggers" don't inspect all they should. I packed a Smart reserve recently. Its warning label says it's approved for single harness systems having a main parachute that can be released. If the 3-rings don't work, the reserve won't work as intended. To me that means release systems including main risers need to be inspected as part of every repack. And we should inspect both ends of each riser (including links) while there's an opportunity. Mark

That's more or less the current system in Germany, so it's not so far fetched. Mark

From my experience: "Tempo 170 Snug" must be a misprint on the Mirage website. A Tempo 170 is snug in an M4, medium in an M5. A Smart 175 fits nicely in an M5. A Smart 190 would be snug, and if you plan on including an AAD, you should have the newer concave-top reserve pilot chute to reduce the stress on the reserve side flap stiffeners and grommets. An Icarus 189 should fit similar to a Smart 190. A Tempo 210 can fit in an M5, but I wouldn't recommend with an AAD because of stress on the reserve side flap stiffeners and grommets, even with the newer concave-top reserve pilot chute. I'd think a PD-193 would have similar issues. Mark

I'd recommend a few test jumps to see if it makes any difference at all. Most canopies with more than a couple hundred jumps are out of trim by way more than 1/4". Mark

There are some good reasons to oppose a 180-day repack cycle, but this isn't one of them. The likelihood that any particular pack job has an error does not change regardless of cycle length. The good pack jobs will last 50% longer, too. Google Zeno's paradox. Mark

Most RC's don't need a lot of runway. Mark

She called it a federal prison, and you made the statement that there is no such federal prison in that location. That implied that she was off her rocker and making up her story about D.B. Cooper having served time there, and from that single point, implied that the remainder of her story should be discredited also. In fact, there is a prison there, it's just a State pen instead of a Federal pen. And that State pen has housed federal prisoners, because they've been executed there. And you can't execute 'em if they haven't been there. So, while your nitpick point is technically correct, the implications that sprung forth from that are not. She is not off her rocker for saying that there was a penitentiary in Jefferson City, because there was. And calling it a Federal penitentiary, since it has housed some federal prisoners, isn't really that big an error. I'm not sure that there are federal prisoners serving time (as opposed to waiting execution) in state prisons. Perhaps you'd be able to shed some light on that. Now the point you haven't responded to: not that it really matters, since the point of her post was fingerprint-switching at the prison or penitentiary, which would hardly affect the fingerprint files held by state or federal investigators. Erich von Daniken proof: it might have happened, so it did happen. Mark

There are two ways to use clamps. If you use clamps on the outside of the canopy, on the high points of the cells (the method illustrated in The Parachute Rigger Handbook) or to hold the width-reduction folds or cocoon in place, then yes, you'd notice the clamps when you put the canopy in the bag. The other way to use clamps is to hold line groups together, as an aid to going from over-the-shoulder pro-pack to layout on the floor. If you were in a hurry, you might miss the B-line or C-line clamp. Either way, I'd think you ought to notice if your tool count was off. Mark

Then your knowledge is apparently lacking. According to this web site, there have been executions of federal prisoners there. So it appears that federal prisoners are sometimes kept in State penitentiaries, thus leading to some of your confusion. And a simple Google search turns up lots of info on the prison, like this. It was built in 1835, and just decommissioned in October of 2004. That's a long time (169 years) for you to have never noticed it... IMO, instead of nitpicking exactly what type of prison it is, you should spend a little more effort concentrating on the meat and potatoes of the story. Sorry. The State Penitentiary is not a Federal Penitentiary. Not that it matters, since altering fingerprint records there would not alter them anywhere else. Mark

Not very knowledgeable, I guess. http://www.bop.gov has the locations of all 21 Federal Penitentiaries, none of which are located in Jefferson City, Missouri. Jo has changed her story: it's now the Missouri State Penitentiary. Not that it matters. State and federal investigators do not keep their fingerprint files at prisons and penitentiaries. James Earl Ray did "escape" from the Missouri State Pen in 1967. Has anybody compared his prints to those of Lee Harvey Oswald? The CIA has attempted to cover its tracks, but the plot is beginning to come to light. Invest in Alcoa. Mark

Jo uses the present tense to describe her attempts to get information from the so-called prison. To the best of my knowledge, there has never been a Federal Penitentiary in Jefferson City. Not that it would matter. State and federal fingerprint files are located at state and federal criminal investigation facilities, not at prisons or penitentiaries. Changing fingerprint cards at a prison might help with an identity-theft type of escape via work-release or similar program, but wouldn't change the files anywhere else in the system. The truth is that Dan Cooper was exchanged with Oleg Penkovsky in a CIA operation. Most of the details of this operation (code-named "Majestic-1", abbreviated "MJ-1") are still secret. Sy Hersh's soon-to-be-released book will shed some light. Mark

One reason why they might be unable to provide you the information you want is that they don't exist. There is no Federal Prison in Jefferson City, Missouri. Mark

The mere fact of damage is not enough to establish a reportable accident. If the damage occurred while the pilot was taxiing from the hanger to the gas pump, it would not be reportable; if, after having gotten gas the pilot intended to fly but damaged the aircraft while taxiing to the runway, it would be reportable. Mark

On most bridles, the easiest place to shorten is the section between the bag and the canopy attachment. But I'd be surprised if changing bridle length by 1" would make much difference if you were also changing the kill line length by the same amount. I would have thought the opposite was true. The pilot chute needs to collapse enough that the skirt cannot catch air, and the shorter the kill line, the more collapse. Mark

If the pilot intended to fly, and if there was substantial damage to the aircraft, then it is a reportable accident. Even if the wheels never left the surface, and even if there were no injuries. A report would be required within 10 days at most. See NTSB 830. Not saying that was the case here. Just saying. Mark

Thanks! I don't know how many times I read that section without actually reading it. Mark

The discussion of aspect ratio in 8.30 (beginning on page 330) centers around rigidity and flight characteristics. No direct mention of opening speed. Is there something else in 8.30 that would answer more directly? Mark

Actual question from the FAA Rigger Test test bank: Which aspect ratio canopy will generally inflate quicker? A) Canopies with aspect ratios up to 1.9. B) Canopies with aspect ratios 2.0 to 2.2. C) Canopies with aspect ratios 2.3 and up. I have no idea. Anybody got an answer, preferably with a citation from Poynter's? Mark

180 square feet. Five cells. Get video. Mark