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Skydiving Gear and Equipment: Main and Reserve Parachutes: Performance Designs: Navigator

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Item: Navigator  Manufacturer: Performance Designs   (739 Hits) Purpose: Main  Shape Square  Cells 9  Fabric: ZP & F-111      Description: The Navigator is specifically designed to address the student's need to learn canopy piloting skills. It is the first canopy to bridge the gap. With its agile, crisp handling at student wing loadings and corresponding lower (student) airspeeds it gives the student what they need. Added: 2001-01-10 | Item ID: 22

User Reviews: Average Rating: Total Reviews: 5 Write a Review Read all 5 Reviews

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3 Recent Reviews:

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

Perfect Beginner Canopy
Rated by: alx72 (more about me) on 2006-11-26 00:00:00 (user reviews) Review ID:1705

Pros: Very forgiving, reliable, perfect to learn on.
Cons: None that I can judge.

Did approx. 55 jumps on Navigators, started my AFF with a Nav 300 (I'm about 210 lbs. exit weight) and then worked my way down through a 260, 240 and finally a Nav 200, which I used for approx. 15 jumps. Cannot complain at all about the canopy, always openend on headings and got me to the ground safely. Very predictable flight characteristics. Glides well. Jumped a different canopy during my AFF for one jump (Balance 280) but didn't like that at all (weak flare,not responsive). Went back to the Navigator straight away. Jumped a Spectre 190 for the last 5 jumps and in direct comparison with the Nav 200 I like the Spectre 190 better though. Openings are even softer with the Spectre, the Spectre also tends to flare a bit better, while it of course loses altitude faster. Nonetheless, all in all the Navigator is the perfect beginner / student canopy. I am happier with the Spectre now, but I would not want to have jumped a different canopy to learn on.

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0 of 0 people found the following review helpful:

Very forgiving
Rated by: Mike111 (more about me) on 2006-08-08 00:00:00 (user reviews) Review ID:1617

Pros: Safe, V good flare, no stall
Cons: Slow

Done around 15 jumps on one of these, including all AFF levels. Found it to be very forgiving of an uneven and early flare and determined to stand me on my feet on touchdown. Very easy to control, makes one feel very safe - no radical turn movements and is a very useful canopy to learnon. Thats probably why our DZ owns ten of them!!!! Cons - None

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7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

Nav 240 - Great fun to learn with and creates a safe feeling under canopy
Rated by: Prestodigitator (more about me) on 2005-11-23 00:00:00 (user reviews) Review ID:1437

Pros: Enough responsiveness for a newbie
Cons: not really any :o)

I've just come back from doing my AFF in Lake Wales and i used a Nav 240 for all but the first 2 of my jumps. Can't remember what the first canody i used was (don't have my log book to hand, sorry!) But i do remember when i changed to the Nav 240. It was a lot more responsive than the first one and a lot more fun in the air. As a student it is VITAL that you feel safe under canopy as you slowly start to experiment and push your comfort zone on each jump. This Canopy made me feel totally safe and, when i finally got the courage to start some (what i thought were) tight 360's and 720's it was responsive and secure enough to give that thrill without the fear that something was going to go wrong :o) The landings on this were great too. Being the student, i obviously made a few early flairs (i'm sure they wont be the last either!) and, as mentioned in other reviews, i too found that, as long as you keep your bottle and don't let go of your brakes, your pretty much going to get an OK landing without the canopy staling on you and i was standing up mine from the get go so its all good :o) I'm not one of these people who are looking to down size as soon as poss. either, so i would say that i would be more than happy to get one of these to get my first couple of hundred in. Now, not knowing my backside from my elbow with regards to comparisons, i can only say that, if you are looking for a canopy that is safe to learn on and then keep for a while to just have good, safe fun on, you wont go far wrong on a Navigator 240.

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