tombuch

Outfriginstanding! Tom Buchanan Instructor Emeritus Comm Pilot MSEL,G Author: JUMP! Skydiving Made Fun and Easy

The confusion within the skydiving community is equally appalling. Part 105.5 says: "No person may conduct a parachute operation, and no pilot in command of an aircraft may allow a parachute operation to be conducted from an aircraft, if that operation creates a hazard to air traffic or persons or property on the surface." In this case the transient aircraft probably should have deviated, or the jump plane should have held off, or the ATC controller should have sorted the conflict. Any one of those things would have prevented the incident. However, the airspace belongs to all users, including transient pilots, and the FAR's make it very clear that jumpers are not permitted to jump if it creates a hazard. A couple of years ago when I was S&TA at The Ranch we had a group of four bi-planes fly directly over the DZ at about 1,500 feet. Later in the day they flew over again in the opposite direction. I was able to track the four-ship and spoke with flight lead who said he believed parachutes open at about 3,000 feet, so he selected the lower crossing altitude to enable his pilots to see and avoid any parachutes. His tune changed when I explained we drop as many as 40 parachutes at a time, and that his four airplanes would be hard pressed to avoid multiple targets. I suggested he give us a call the next time he was intending to overfly the drop zone and we would be happy to clear the airspace for his group. Education works. At another point I was speaking at a large pilot fly-in near our drop zone. My discussion topic was airspace and how jumpers and pilots can work together. A local flight instructor stood up and said his very active school sends all their students on cross country flights directly over our DZ, and he 'wondered' if that was a problem. I suggested that he use that cross country as a means of teaching his students about drop zones, and suggested he show them the parachute symbol on the chart. Then they could find ways to deviate, or use the radio to call us when they were five miles out. Likewise, if they were monitoring ATC they would know about our activity level. I let him know we would be happy to hold jump operations to let a student pilot cross overhead. Education works. It's important that we reach out to the pilot community and help them to understand what we do. It's equally important to reach within the skydiving community and make sure all of our jumpers understand their responsibility to avoid creating a hazard. Oh yeah, the art work in this article is an outrage! Tom Buchanan Instructor Emeritus Comm Pilot MSEL,G Author: JUMP! Skydiving Made Fun and Easy

One reason is that on some airplanes the seatbelts don't really work and the nylon won't slide through the tension bar. Jumpers that make lots of skydives on those planes learn not to bother tightening the belt because it won't tighten, and then don't bother when they get a belt that actually will work. I've made thousands of jumps on planes with beat-up old belts that have stiff nylon that won't move, or nylon with abrasions that jam in the mechanism. I've complained, but the owners don't think of seatbelts as critical equipment and neither do most jumpers. My suggestion is to tighten the belt if you can, and complain to management if you can't. Consider the maintenance of seatbelts to be a critical safety element, and if they aren't properly maintained you should question the rest of the maintenance program. Tom Buchanan Instructor Emeritus Comm Pilot MSEL,G Author: JUMP! Skydiving Made Fun and Easy

So can you skip discussion about the Executive Session and offer some background about what objections members might have about Advanced Aerospace, or the general discussion that members have had in open session or outside of PIA? The Skydiving article suggests the vote may have been a business protection action to inhibit the success of another AAD within the marketplace, and that makes PIA look pretty bad. Other alternative include that members believe the technology has problems, the business plan has problems, or the manufacturer isn't meeting a safety or design standard, and those concerns would suggest PIA was correct in their move. I think the skydiving community is looking to PIA members for their expertise, and would be well served by an informed discussion about the issues surrounding Advanced Aerospace and the Vigil. Thoughts? Tom Buchanan Instructor Emeritus Comm Pilot MSEL,G Author: JUMP! Skydiving Made Fun and Easy

They reported that the buckle was unreachable due to the position of the jumper's body. It's also possible for the buckle to be threaded through the leg strap or lateral, and as the person falls away the released buckle jams under the nylon strap, making it impossible to free while under tension. Obviously opening the belt is an easier way to handle a hang-up than cutting the belt, but sometimes, as you noted in this case, it isn't enough. That's why every jumpship should have a knife, and hopefully there will still be a person on the plane able to use it. That's something for everybody to check at your home drop zone next weekend! Tom Buchanan Instructor Emeritus Comm Pilot MSEL,G Author: JUMP! Skydiving Made Fun and Easy

Ahh, jumping through clouds is a blast, but it's also dangerous, and in the United States it is illegal. With that said, I have, over many years, had some extraordinary cloud jumps. The best was probably a skydive in Z-Hills where pull altitude was just above a thin layer. As I prepared to dump I saw my shadow in the cloud surrounded by a giant sunball and rainbow. As I waved off my shadow waved back, then I hit the layer and was immediately back in clear air. Cloud jumping really is dangerous in American airspace, and it is very clearly illegal. Since you are listed as a student, I hope you will take a look at The Ranch S&TA web site, and review article 19 "Jumping Near Clouds." Then discuss the hazards of cloud jumping with your instructor and a trusted pilot. Companion articles include article 8 "Airspace" and article 13 "FAA Regulations Applied." In civilian skydiving accidental cloud jumps are inevitable, but we should endeavor to keep them to a minimum and reduce the risk we expose ourselves to, and we should reduce the risk imposed upon transient pilots. Tom Buchanan Instructor Emeritus Comm Pilot MSEL,G Author: JUMP! Skydiving Made Fun and Easy

Yeah, but if you are going to be the first group out, make sure at least one person in your group is sitting up by the pilot so he can push and claw his way to the door at the last minute. Tom Buchanan Instructor Emeritus Comm Pilot MSEL,G Author: JUMP! Skydiving Made Fun and Easy

Is there any hook Velcro that could be pulling the material apart or causing the wear? Tom Buchanan Instructor Emeritus Comm Pilot MSEL,G Author: JUMP! Skydiving Made Fun and Easy

OK, so far in this thread I've heard that the term "throwing" a pilot chute started with BASE jumping, and wing suit jumping. Wrong. The term was around long before either contemporary wing suits or BASE jumping. As I recall, back in the day people would pull the pilot chute out to full arm extension and then just let it go. There was a chance that the bridle would wrap around the wrist, so instruction focused on throwing or tossing it outboard, away from the body. Entanglements seemed to almost vanish until we started using hand deployed pilot chutes for AFF students. Once again we started seeing bridles around or close to the wrist, and the throw became an instructional point again. Does throwing the pilot chute with major force make a difference in contemporary skydiving? Probably not, but it is important to keep the bridle clear of the wrist. While that point has been around since the early days, it has gained importance in the world of hand deployed BASE pilot chutes. BASE video has given us a good view of what happens when the pilot chute is simply released and the bridle has a chance to hang up on the wrist. So, I'm fine with teaching a student to "throw" the pilot chute, as long as the real function of the instruction is to get the pilot chute and bridle clear of the arm,wrist, and body. Tom Buchanan Instructor Emeritus Comm Pilot MSEL,G Author: JUMP! Skydiving Made Fun and Easy

My favorite was a guy who brought his girlfriend for a tandem. They were both geared up and trained, and the guy was assigned to me. Another instructor had the girl. Just as we were walking to the plane I announced I had forgotten my goggles, and went back to get them, bringing the guy with me. He quickly got into a tuxedo under his jumpsuit and we went back out to meet the plane. The jump was pretty uneventful, but as privately planned, I opened significantly lower than the girlfriend so we would land first. As soon as our feet touched the ground the guy got out of the jumpsuit, and then the other instructor landed right in front of us. As the girls feet were touching down the guy got on one knee, held out the ring, and made his proposal. It was super cool to watch. The girl was way overloaded by the jump and had no idea what was going on. She was blank faced for a few seconds trying to figure out why her boyfriend was in a tuxedo, and trying to comprehend his words. Finally she put it all together, said yes, and they both cried and hugged, and hopefully lived happily ever after. I think that was one of those milk chocolate squares with soft caramel inside. Yum yum. Tom Buchanan Instructor Emeritus Comm Pilot MSEL,G Author: JUMP! Skydiving Made Fun and Easy

It sounds like you have some legitimate concerns about the overall experience and judgment of this person, and his ability to be a safe tandem instructor. Some others have already noted that the tandem skill set does not require exceptional belly or freefly skills, but I believe it does require significant freefall experience and awareness, and of course it requires highly developed judgment. Unfortunately, the standards are only as good as the examiners issuing the ratings. I guess we can bitch about it, but we can't really do anything more than that. And in this case, you point out, the examiner has a vested financial interest in getting him a rating so he can shovel students out the door. Obviously the tandem instructors need solid judgment, but so do the examiners. I think the only real recourse you have is to contact the manufacturer of the rig directly and express your concern. That might get some extra eyeballs on the operation, but it won't change the reality of the examination process. Sorry. Tom Buchanan Instructor Emeritus Comm Pilot MSEL,G Author: JUMP! Skydiving Made Fun and Easy

Paper tickets are on their way out, but our rigger certificates won't be relegated to bits in a machine. The paper "certificate" is being replaced with a plastic version. Riggers will still need to have the "ticket' available for inspection, so the only change is the material it is made of. I replaced my paper pilot certificate with the new plastic version in January and got a replacement plastic riggers certificate at the same time. I guess it's alright. I also have the original paper certificate for posterity so there really isn't a loss. The FAA is also proposing to add a photo to the pilot certificate, but so far they haven't published that rule. The sticky point is how to get the photos without burdening the pilot community. One proposal is to have photos shot when a medical certificate is issued. That's still a ways off, and it's unclear if photos will be added to the certificates of airmen other than pilots. We will just have to wait for the NPRM to find out about that one. A replacement plastic certificate costs just $2.00, and can be ordered online or through the mail. Check out the FAA site at: http://www.faa.gov/licenses_certificates/airmen_certification/certificate_replacement/. Tom Buchanan Instructor Emeritus Comm Pilot MSEL,G Author: JUMP! Skydiving Made Fun and Easy

Yup. Essentially that's it. An EMT is licensed to practice under the direction of a physician. When an EMT (or paramedic) is serving in that role the patient has the benefit of physician directed medical care. Sometimes that's as simple as pre-existing direction to, for example, use oxygen in a predefined situation, and sometimes it's a specific as a radio link with verbal direction. If I say or indicate that I'm an EMT, the patient has a right to expect that full level of care. If, on the other hand, I simply assist as a citizen, the standard of care expected by the patient is much lower, and as a responding Good Samaritan I have more leeway to act responsibly. But in that case, I can't offer anything more than basic level first aid. The specifics of what protection is offered to a Good Samaritan will vary from state to state, but generally, a responding citizen can do whatever he thinks is reasonable to assist another person who is in trouble. A licensed medical provider, on the other hand, is limited by his specific scope of practice. The laws vary from state to state, so if you have specific questions about your region I suggest you contact the local ambulance squad and chat with a training officer. Tom Buchanan Instructor Emeritus Comm Pilot MSEL,G Author: JUMP! Skydiving Made Fun and Easy

I think the point DiverDriver is making is that we should look at all incidents involving jump planes even if jumpers are not on board at the time, because those incidents speak to the experience, training, and judgment of the pilots and owner/operators. When we understand how often these pilots and operations have accidents relative to other GA activity, it becomes clear that we need to do a better job of managing the human element of the risk equation. I hold an FAA Commercial Pilot certificate in single and multi-engine airplanes, and am often surprised at poor judgment displayed by jump pilots. I'm amazed (and thankful) our airplanes aren't crashing more often. Tom Buchanan Instructor Emeritus Comm Pilot MSEL,G Author: JUMP! Skydiving Made Fun and Easy

Keep in mind that aircraft insurance is NOT mandatory, and at least some DZ (including big turbine DZ's) don't carry any insurance at all. As the cost of insurance goes up, more DZ's will drop their coverage. As that happens the only standards we will have are those under FAA regulations. Jumpers might take a moment to ask the DZO if their aircraft are insured, and what the insurance company minimums are. At least a few skydivers will be very surprised to learn how little training and recurrent training their pilots actually have. Tom Buchanan Instructor Emeritus Comm Pilot MSEL,G Author: JUMP! Skydiving Made Fun and Easy

Wow, relax. Your profile says you are in Canada, and your country tends to do things differently, and sometimes even better. Here in the United States our national emergency medical protocols reflect an urban environment with close by definitive care, and a relatively untrained group of responders. Sadly, those protocols have not kept pace with the training an EMT now receives, nor do they appropriately serve the more rural areas of our country, where definitive care may be an hour or more away and prompt field care is critical. In the three states that I have been licensed glucose tabs are considered a drug, and the administration of glucose by an EMT must be specifically approved by medical control (EMS doctor) either in a standing order, or for a specific case through radio type approval. An asthma inhaler is a drug that must also be approved by a doctor. The use of an epinephrine pen must be approved by a doctor. Heck, an EMT cannot even administer aspirin at all. It’s pretty nuts. I’ll give you an even crazier example. Medical oxygen is considered a drug and cannot be administered by a responding EMT without the specific authorization of a doctor, either through standing orders or online (telephone/radio). As an EMT with significant training in the administration of oxygen, I still cannot deliver oxygen to a patient unless I have been specifically dispatched and am covered by a medical control agreement. At my drop zone we are not legally permitted to maintain oxygen, or to deliver it to an injured jumper. Yet, as a pilot, the FAA encourages me to use oxygen anytime I’m flying above about 8,000 feel at night, and I can supply oxygen to my passengers at any altitude based on my status as pilot in command. Gosh golly, I’m even REQUIRED to use oxygen, and to provide oxygen to my passengers at higher altitudes, and the FAA offers a pilot absolutely no training in the administration of oxygen. I suppose if I had a trauma patient I could drag him into an airplane and then provide oxygen as a pilot in command, but of course that’s silly. In many cases, a lay person acting as a Good Samaritan can actually do way more than an EMT. It’s important for a business owner to understand that if the business is providing medical services it must comply with state regulation regarding delivery, while an individual can follow his own conscious as long as the treatment offered is “reasonable.” If I come upon a conscious person with chest pain, shortness of breath, shooting pain in the left arm, and a history of heart attacks, I can offer aspirin as a Good Samaritan (and so can anybody else), but I cannot identify myself as an EMT and then provide that aspirin, even if a doctor tells me it’s alright. As an individual I can certainly provide another persons glucose tabs to a person who I think is in insulin shock, but I must do that as a Good Samaritan. I can’t do that as a licensed EMT, nor can I carry around glucose tabs in my pocket “in case” I come upon a person in need unless it done as part of a recognized program with medical control. My DZ has had a serious conflict with our local rescue squad and has hashed these issues out in great detail with the New York State Department of Health. We cannot provide things like glucose, oxygen, epie pens, or any other drug without first obtaining medical control coverage. To do otherwise would subject us to the potential of litigation, and licensed medical providers (such as EMT’s), could face action against our state licenses. It’s nuts. It’s really nuts. Any DZ in this country that is going to provide any medical services should consult their local EMS provider and clarify what they will allow, and what they will prohibit. In many cases it will be a matter of the local rescue squad agreeing to “look the other way” in the interest of patient service. Hopefully most drop zones have a better relationship with their local rescue squads and will be able to do a bit more in terms of providing life saving medical support. As for Canada…one of my favorite pain relievers for muscle aches is Tylenol with codeine. It’s available as an over the counter drug in Canada (just 8mg of codeine and a bit of caffeine), but codeine is a federally controlled substance in the United States. Possessing that stuff could get me in serious trouble here, but I make sure to pick up a bottle or two when I travel up north. Tom Buchanan Instructor Emeritus Comm Pilot MSEL,G Author: JUMP! Skydiving Made Fun and Easy

In many states giving those tabs without a prescription is illegal. I'm an EMT, and in New York, Connecticut, and Vermont (the states I've in which I've been licensed) I can assist a diabetic with his own medication, but cannot provide that medication to anybody else. The same is true with an inhaler for asthma, and an epie pen for allergic reactions. Heck, under the law our drop zone is not even allowed to provide oxygen until a responding rescue worker arrives. In most states a lay person may be somewhat better protected by "Good Samaritan" laws, but you still need to be very careful about what you do as an individual who just happens to have the needed medication, and as a business owner who stocks medication. Check with your local rescue squad for the laws in your state and then make an informed decision about what you will stock on the DZ. Tom Buchanan Instructor Emeritus Comm Pilot MSEL,G Author: JUMP! Skydiving Made Fun and Easy

Assuming you are a rigger, why would you not be able to pack a main, as long as you are familiar with it? Why is this one any different than a "conventional" sport main? Tom Buchanan Instructor Emeritus Comm Pilot MSEL,G Author: JUMP! Skydiving Made Fun and Easy

There is an interesting side thread under the main thread: An introduction to Skydive Secure - data unity for skydivers about the storage and retrieval of emergency health information and emergency contacts. BIGUN wrote: As I recall, there was a case a few years ago where a tandem student was in a nasty wreck, but should have survived. Unfortunately, she was asthmatic and died in the operating room. The medical team had no idea of her pre-existing condition and wasn’t prepared for the attack. Following that fatality my DZ made it a manifest policy to check the waiver of any injured and non-responsive jumper and relay critical health information to the responding medics. For more information about our general response policy, see article 10 “In an Emergency” at http://theblueskyranch.com/STA.php. Most drop zones have a place for medical information on their waivers, even if it is just under “medical conditions.” My question is how many DZ’s actually retrieve this information for the rescue squad, and how many skydivers with critical conditions make it a point to include them on the waiver? Perhaps this is something to discuss at your Safety Day… Tom Buchanan Instructor Emeritus Comm Pilot MSEL,G Author: JUMP! Skydiving Made Fun and Easy

Awareness of the jump operation. In my case a guy walked into the student newspaper office where I was working as a photographer and offered a free skydive if we would do a story about it. That's all it took. There were two competing DZ's in our area, but I didn't even know about them at the time. I was a bit smarter a year later and turned the tables, calling one of those other DZ's and offering to do a story for a free jump. Being a starving and somewhat smart college student, I repeated that approach in year three at the third DZ. So, I managed to get my first three jumps free. I think most people see an ad, bumper sticker, or hear from a friend. Those that are interested in jumping but don't know where to go tend to check the yellow pages, or search online. Very few do any significant research or comparison shopping. Based on my 25+ years of experience and more than 20 years of teaching, I'd say most students have no idea how the sport is regulated, how DZ's or instructors are certified, or the relative safety of our sport. They just assume that any DZ that is in business must be safe, and commit based on that assumption. Obviously, that's not true. Driving consumer education was a key focus of my book JUMP! Skydiving Made Fun and Easy. Unfortunately, very few prospective jumpers bother to read much of anything, or to even shop around, and the skydiving industry works hard to keep them in the dark. Tom Buchanan Instructor Emeritus Comm Pilot MSEL,G Author: JUMP! Skydiving Made Fun and Easy

Check out my article "FAA Regulations Applied" at http://theblueskyranch.com/STA.php The specific regulation is 105.43 which says, in part: No person may conduct a parachute operation using a single harness, dual parachute system, and no pilot in command of an aircraft may allow any person to conduct a parachute operation from that aircraft using a single harness dual parachute system, unless that system has at least one main parachute, one approved reserve parachute, and one approved single person harness and container..." The words "person" and "parachute operation" specifically include the pilots, manifest workers, owners, and anybody else related to the jump. . Tom Buchanan Instructor Emeritus Comm Pilot MSEL,G Author: JUMP! Skydiving Made Fun and Easy

USPA has a summery of data collected on the annual membership renewal form. Check out the section called "Who Skydives" at: http://www.uspa.org/about/sport.htm#statistics. It includes pdf files of the annual data going back to 2000. Renewals for 2006 showed 2,122,749 jumps, and 908 injuries, giving an average of 1 injury for every 2,338 jumps. That data is of course all self reported. When I was the S&TA at The Ranch, a large multi-turbine DZ, we tracked the actual number of jumps and correlated it to ambulance calls in 2003. At that time we had one ambulance call for every 2,989 jumps. That includes injuries as serious as a fatality, and as minor as a student ankle injury. An interesting statistic that came from the 2003 Ranch study is that for that year, 23% of our ambulance calls were for landings off the field. That gave us incentive to reduce off field landings, and to improve our response to any landing away from the airport. The ambulance squad refused to report any statistics for later years, so we don't know for sure if we were able to reduce the off field injury rate, but anecdotally it sure seemed like we had success on that score. Tom Buchanan Instructor Emeritus Comm Pilot MSEL,G Author: JUMP! Skydiving Made Fun and Easy

The problem RIGGERROB has identified with adding too much rigging to the first jump course is that the student will be overloaded, and will forget the really important stuff (like dealing with malfunctions). So, the student should be given a quick overview of the rig right away, but on the first few jumps, the JM is really responsible for rigging control. Additional information should then be given on each future jump. This is the philosophy developed for the ISP and is specifically valuable for a tandem progression. The first few jumps have almost no rigging. The equipment is explained at around jump three as part of a comprehensive ground school (CGS) when the student enters the AFF part of the program, and then elements are covered in great detail on later jumps. Even with a traditional AFF or SL program, the equipment information needed for the first jump is very limited. The bulk of the information should be spread out through the multi-jump training program so it will be better retained by the student. By the end of the program, the student should have a full plate of rigging knowledge. Take a look at the grid for the ISP in the USPA SIM for a better idea of how rigging should be taught through a progression. ...at least that's my position, and what I thik RIGGERROB was getting at. Tom Buchanan Instructor Emeritus Comm Pilot MSEL,G Author: JUMP! Skydiving Made Fun and Easy

A while back I started working on getting drop zones depicted in GPS and FMS systems. The idea was to provide pilots with drop zone locations on their digital displays so they would at least know where our DZ's are, and avoid us. The manufacturers wern't interested in helping us (they still aren't), and AOPA said it wasn't their problem. The FAA didn't care, and the various standards groups that manage data and systems had absolutely not a shred of interest in adding drop zone data. USPA was willing to take on the challenge, and once USPA stepped up to the plate with their 32,000 members, AOPA joined in with their 400,000 members. From there we were able to get FAA on board, and then the national and international standards organizations. We still need the manufacturers, but with USPA in the lead and AOPA working the issue (along with the Air Safety Foundation), we have a good chance of concluding the project. I've been an AOPA member for many years, and it is without doubt an outstanding organization, and I encourage every skydiver to join. But we still need USPA as our direct representative for general aviation issues that affect drop zones and jump operations, and as our representative for legislative issues unique to skydiving. USPA has a terrific relationship with AOPA and ASF, and with the rest of the GA community. We need USPA in that role. Tom Buchanan Instructor Emeritus Comm Pilot MSEL,G Author: JUMP! Skydiving Made Fun and Easy

It sounds like you were in a large weather system, and there was probably no way to get away from it, other than increasing your descent speed with a tight spiral. It's also possible you were in a mountain wave on the windward side of the ridge. I sometimes seek out thermals to increase my hang time and improve vertical separation with other canopies. They are generally small and concentrated, and often build over very specific land features. To get away from them, fly away from the land feature, keeping in mind the thermal will move downwind as it climbs. I'm also a glider pilot and use that skill set to find thermals. Flying gliders is fun stuff, but skydiving is way better! Tom Buchanan Instructor Emeritus Comm Pilot MSEL,G Author: JUMP! Skydiving Made Fun and Easy