Test jumping in 1948

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"For extra money in his college years, Serling worked part-time testing parachutes for the United States Army Air Forces. According to his radio station coworkers, he received $50 for each successful jump and had once been paid $500 (half before and half if he survived) for a hazardous test. His last test jump was a few weeks before his wedding. In one instance, he earned $1,000 for testing a jet ejection seat that had killed the previous three testers."

He was 24 at the time.

In 2017 money, that's $500 per jump, sometimes $5,000... and if you test jet-seat $10,000

[ryoder 1,380]

Ho...lee...shit!
You couldn't pay me enough to ride an ejection seat. I worked in the F-16 "Escape Design" dept for one co-op term when I was in college. I read the USAF requirements for "acceptable rate of spinal compression fractures", and also read incident reports of when things went wrong.

"There are only three things of value: younger women, faster airplanes, and bigger crocodiles" - Arthur Jones.

[BillyVance 34]

A guy I used to jump with in the 90's, "Cap'n Cuervo" Jimbo Wilson, was a marine pilot in Vietnam. He was shot down a few times, including once at what, IIRC, 600 feet and punched out. Yeah he suffered a broken back and other injuries from that one but recovered. His ejection seat, well, one like it, hung in a corner of the famous bar in Pensacola, but damned if I can remember what it's called.

"Mediocre people don't like high achievers, and high achievers don't like mediocre people." - SIX TIME National Champion coach Nick Saban

[ryoder 1,380]

One year at the Nationals, I was sitting in the Rigger's Convention, waiting for the meeting to start, and a guy sitting next to me was telling the guy next to him about the time he punched out over 'Nam. Hell, maybe it was Jimbo; I didn't get their names. I was just listening in fascination. (This was before I went to college.)

"There are only three things of value: younger women, faster airplanes, and bigger crocodiles" - Arthur Jones.

[BillyVance 34]

ryoder

One year at the Nationals, I was sitting in the Rigger's Convention, waiting for the meeting to start, and a guy sitting next to me was telling the guy next to him about the time he punched out over 'Nam. Hell, maybe it was Jimbo; I didn't get their names. I was just listening in fascination. (This was before I went to college.)

Might be him. He sold or gave away flotation devices in a fanny pack for beach jumps. I still have mine, given free of course.

"Mediocre people don't like high achievers, and high achievers don't like mediocre people." - SIX TIME National Champion coach Nick Saban