Re: [Para5-0] Requiring B license applicants to fly their canopy with their eyes closed for 15 seconds (5 flares, approx 3 seconds each)?
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BINGO!! That is why the BOD is trying their hardest to come up with something to get started on this problem.
I witnessed one of my best friends die under a perfectly good canopy, and I have witnessed a few others that were "just friends". I can tell you what it looks like to see the impact... So I honestly want a change for the better.
It seems the BOD, or at least you, have officially said instructors are not qualified to teach canopy control skills...
What I am curious about... Has the BOD put together a matrix of the incidents - how they occurred, etc? Before you claim the majority of the instructors are not qualified, do you have any proof that instructor's lack of skills are a cause of the problem at hand?
Swooping accidents are killing people, but these are people with 1000+ jumps, and the coaching that might save a life is not going to be "fixed" by any USPA syllabus, in the same way the USPA could not write a syllabus that would teach a 4 way team to turn points like Airspeed - it takes highly personalized coaching, hundreds of jumps with coaching - and even then - it is the coaches that seem to die too, or people under the mentoring of world class coaches. (if you ignore the occasional guy with mad skillz that everyone tells to stop, and he ignores everyone).
Canopy collisions are an issue, but then again, the last one that killed someone I knew, was my 4way coach years ago from Perris, someone who would have been qualified to teach basic canopy flight by any one's standards. Someone with all the ratings and world champion trophies. The other canopy collision that killed a friend - both parties in the collision had many jumps, decades of experience, and it occurred right after deployment.
But, I witnessed someone die at Skydive AZ, with less than 500 jumps, due to a collision, so I think this is something we can work on collectively.
So, I am thinking here - how can I be part of the solution... And the sad part is, I honestly don't think this program is going to make a big dent in the funeral count as it is currently written - because it is the D licence jumpers that die the most.
Should it be thrown away... No... I can see injury count going down as the long spot drills and braked turn drills will help people with reasonably loaded canopies, not break their leg avoiding a powerline. And maybe it will save a funeral here and there, so it is worth it...
But - I would like to see a matrix that breaks down all the canopy related injury/fatality statistics - that identifies how (if) the USPA training can address each category. Until this is done (and maybe it already has) - the training program is not focused on the proclaimed goal of saving lives.
(This post was edited by tdog on Dec 26, 2011, 7:37 PM)
