Hooknswoop

They do have longer recovery arcs than the Sabre he is currently flying. They are definately a step "up" in performance. It is the logical progression, square, semi-elliptical, fully elliptical. Even if he gets the same size he is currently jumping, he would experience better openings and more performance. Adding in a down-size would result in a very noticeable increase in speed, etc. Smaller doesn't = better, elliptical not does = better. It all depends on what the pilot is looking for. Hook

You made the same mistake I did. He is flying a Sabre 190 now, the Sabre 2 and Safire2 are diffrent canopies. Because of their planform (both are semi-ellpiticals, tapered trailing edges) they are higher perfomance that the original Sabre. I think either oneof those canopies would be a good next step. I personally like the Safire2, but I haven't flown a Sabre2 yet. I have heard good things about them, though. Best advice is to demo. Hook

Right, follow the manufacturer's instructions for assembly, attaching the bridle to the free-bag, w/ a larks head knot. How many different reserves can be put into a container? What about civilian canopies and de-militarized containers? It is up to the assembling rigger to determine compatibility. I don't remember the container and reserve, but they were marked as being compatible with each other. The container only took one reserve and the reserve could only be packed into one container. The manufacturers were unable to make this stick. Hook

A Senior rigger can assemble gear and it is up to the rigger to determine compatability. AC-105-2C "The assembly or mating of approved parachute components from different manufacturers may be made by a certificated and appropriately rated parachute rigger or parachute loft in accordance with the parachute manufacturer's instructions and without further authorization by the manufacturer or the FAA." If I wanted to replace the reserve PC in my Micron with a Mirage PC, I could. For liability reasons, I wouldn't do that to other people's rigs, but it is legal. Hook

The aircraft was built with seat belts, unless it was specically ordered as a cargo aircraft. Contct Cessna or an A & P for information on installing seat belts. I have been in turbo 206's w/ 6 jumpers, all belted in. Hook

No, I did get that part right. The Cobalt is fully elliptical. Hook

Oh well, in that case, I wouldn't recommend a fully elliptical Cobalt/Stiletto/Crossfire to someone with 100 jumps. Hook

With 25 jumps, I wouldn't recommend a fully ellpitical canopy. Hook

Stand out in the landing area and see how many "side gusts" you feel. Generally this is what jumpers believe happened when they flare un-evenly or are not straight into the wind. Hook

If enough jumpers feel the way you do, seat belts willnot be installed. If enough jumpers decide that they will not get in a jump ship without seat belts, the seat belts will be installed. I would recommend gathering as much information on seat belts as possible, including cost of parts and installation (talk to DiverDriver and an A & P). Get as many skydivers educated and "on-board" with the idea that seat belts are a very good idea and they really must be installed. Then present this information to the DZO with either a petetion or as many skydivers with you as possible. It's not going to be easy, but if the belts get installed it will be worth it. Hook

The FAA says that, if installed, an AAD must be maintained according to the manufacturer's instructions. Hook

Manslaughter. Yes, if a rigger's negligence kills a skydiver, i think they should be held responsible. Hook

Para-gear has 12" X 24" lexan sheet for $12.00 on pg 183. Hook

Quietly, yes. Hook

I just opened a reserve that had been assembled and packed once. The links were not tightened down, with one link having several threads showing. I could remove all 4 links (washing the container) without a wrench. Hook

93 mph in the dive, 78 mph as I planed out. Anyone have an Expert Cypres that is getting close to the 12 year, 3 month mark? Hook

You have to be kidding me. Hook

Yes, and hopefully everyone else does. Hook

No sweat Who cares what everyone on the plane would do? If the plane crashes and they slam into you, killing you would you care what they thought then? I think wear ing a seat belt is a sign of respect for your fellow jumper's safety. Like Bill V. pointed out, they aren't designed to protect the jumper wearing them very much, but at least you won't kill someone else. Hook

I would have left at 3 or 4 seconds. My mind went "cutaway" when the 3 or 4 was on the screen. The canopy looked like crap. Not saying you did anything wrong, just what I would have done. Hook

Secured = worn or belted in. Hook

True. In a C-206, I attach the seat belt to my chest strap. It would hold me better than laying it across my lap, where I don't think it would very much. Also, attaching it to your harness prevents you from slipping out from under it and becoming a projectile. LOL- very true. Hook

Seat Belts Why wear them? FAR 91.107 requires the use of seat belts for all occupants. More importantly, in the event the aircraft crashes before a safe jump altitude is reached. A seat belt may make difference between surviving the landing and not surviving the landing. If you are seated towards the tail, not wearing a seat belt and the aircraft crashes, you will become a projectile, hurtling towards the front of the aircraft. The force of the collision as you reach the jumpers near the front of the aircraft could kill you and the jumper(s) you collide with. Any loose item in the aircraft will also become projectiles. A camera helmet moving at 80 knots slamming into a jumper sitting near the pilot can easily kill a jumper that would have otherwise survived the landing, possibly without injury. Camera helmets, helmets, sky-surfing boards, tubes, any loose article must all be secured before take off. Do not allow the pilot to take off if all the jumpers are not wearing their own seat belt and all loose article are not secured. How to wear them. Sitting on the floor, facing the tail with a seat belt over your lap, will not restrain you in the event of a crash. You can easily slide out from under the belt. The seat belt must be passed through the jumper's harness if sitting on the floor to restrain the jumper properly. Putting the "tab" end of the belt through the harness will make it easier to remove the seat belt than putting the "buckle" end through the harness. If the aircraft does crash, having the set belt attached to your harness will likely result in less injury than a single strap across your lap. The harness will spread the forces better. When to take them off? Different drop zones have different minimum altitudes for removing seat belts. Jumpers tend to want to remove them as soon as possible in order to get more comfortable. Before taking off your seat belt, look outside the aircraft at the ground and ask yourself, "Am I willing to exit the aircraft from this altitude?" If the answer is "no", then in the event of an aircraft emergency, you would have to re-connect your seat belt and should not have removed it in the first place. If the answer is "yes", there are several more factors you must take into consideration. If the aircraft's engine(s) [one for single engine aircraft, both engines for twin engine aircraft. Twin engine aircraft may still be able to climb or maintain altitude on one engine, dramatically increasing the pilot's and jumpers' options in the event of an engine failure], quit, the aircraft will immediately begin to descend. Most jump ships climb at an airspeed close to the best glide speed of the aircraft, meaning that if the engine(s) quit, the pilot doesn't have any excess airspeed to use up before establishing a descent. In other words, the pilot must begin to descend immediately after losing the engine(s) in order to avoid stalling the aircraft. If you are seated next to the door, you may be able to exit quickly, at or above the altitude you looked outside at and determined you could leave the aircraft in the vent of an emergency. If you are seated near the pilot of a larger jump ship, by the time you reach the door, you will be well below the altitude you determined you could safely exit the aircraft at. What would you do now? You are in an aircraft without an engine(s), too low to exit, without a seat belt on, standing next to an open door. Not a good situation to be in. Before removing your seat belt, consider how much altitude will be lost before you can reach the door and exit. Remember it will take time for the jumper(s) near the door to recognize the emergency, decide what action to take (exit or stay, this should be based on the DZ's policy for emergency exits), then open the door and exit. During this time, the aircraft will be descending. The lower the pilot gets, the more distracting and dangerous it will be for jumpers to be moving towards the door, changing the weight and center of gravity of the aircraft, increasing the pilot's already very high workload. For example, if you are sitting next to the bulkhead of a twin otter (i.e. last out of the aircraft) and you take your seat belt off at 1,000 feet and the engines quit at 1,100 feet. By the time you reach the door, you will be too low to exit. There will likely be some people between you and the door that feel it is too low to exit, blocking, or at least making it difficult for you to get to the door, slowing you down, and resulting in even less altitude when/if you do reach the door. Never re-connect the seat belt together after taking it off. The loop of a connected seat belt creates a snag point for jumpers exiting after you. Even if you do not wish to wear a seat belt, wear one to protect the pilot from legal action (seat belts are required to be worn by the FAA) and to protect your fellow jumpers. Getting to the door in the event of an aircraft emergency of any jump ship will probably take more time than you think it will. Keep your seat belt on until a safe emergency exit is assured. Hook

If I intentionally had a side-by-side over my head and wanted to turn them into a downplane, I would pull on the outside risers or toggles. So if I was un-intentionally under a side-by-side, I would either a) fly the man with the reaer risers, leaving the brakes stowed on both canopies, or b) cutaway the main canopy. Which choice I would make would depend on what 2 canpoies were over my head, how they were flying, and if the main would clear if I cut it away. Hook

Riggers- What technique and tools do you use for Vector/Mirage G3 Free-bags to pull the pull-up cord up through the free-bag? I use a T-Bodkin with a straight closing pin on a lanyard. I put a tube stow on the pin and use it to hold the pin through the slot to keep the bodkin from coming out of the lower grommet. Hook