Altimeter : Feet vs. Meter at European Dropzones .

[maLUCo 0]

In a curiousity ...at European Dropzones , Altimeters usage in Feet or Meters ?

[piisfish 135]

depends, a bit of both actually.
I have both on analog alti's.

scissors beat paper, paper beat rock, rock beat wingsuit - KarlM

[NealFitz 0]

most of us in the UK use feet on analogue altis. when i jumped in france and spain most used metres

Dudeist Skydiver #170
You do not need a parachute to skydive, you only need one to skydive again

[JanuszPS 0]

depends where,

obviously in UK and Ireland feet is the way.
On the continent mostly meters, however there are some exceptions, example Skydive Spain (Seville) is feet as the operator is from UK.
but I wasn't everywhere ... yet

PS
altimiter - you can use whichever you wish, however you need to know how to convert units. Stick with the most familiar with you.

Janusz

Back to Poland... back home.

[format 0]

If you need to jump but not having appropriate altimeter
(btw why it's not altifeeter?),
it is usefull to mind-switch quickly.

This is fairly accurate and I'm ok with it:

Feet multiple by 0.3 (5000ft*3=15000, take zero off=1500 meters)

Meters divide by 0.3 (3000m/3=1000, add zero=10000 feet)

I really don't care which Alti I use. If you don't own one - neither should you care.
Unless this is too complicated

What goes around, comes later.

[JanuszPS 0]

yep, I also multiply/divide by 3.
In terms of the scale in my opinion for a quick decision making it is extremely important that in a stressful situation I can easily identify how high I am with good sensation of the altitude loss. This means I've spend most of my life in a country where meters (system SI) is in place, so in a blink of my eye a can say how much altitude I will loose in a unit of time. I don't have that comfort working in feet.
take care
Janusz

Back to Poland... back home.

[lost_n_confuzd 0]

Quote

If you need to jump but not having appropriate altimeter
(btw why it's not altifeeter?),
it is usefull to mind-switch quickly.

This is fairly accurate and I'm ok with it:

Feet multiple by 0.3 (5000ft*3=15000, take zero off=1500 meters)

Meters divide by 0.3 (3000m/3=1000, add zero=10000 feet)

I think you mean "3", not "0.3"

Then you can take away that add/take away a zero step.

[virgin-burner 1]

Quote

Quote

If you need to jump but not having appropriate altimeter
(btw why it's not altifeeter?),
it is usefull to mind-switch quickly.

This is fairly accurate and I'm ok with it:

Feet multiple by 0.3 (5000ft*3=15000, take zero off=1500 meters)

Meters divide by 0.3 (3000m/3=1000, add zero=10000 feet)

I think you mean "3", not "0.3"

Then you can take away that add/take away a zero step.

wow, someone that listened to their math-teacher in school!

“Some may never live, but the crazy never die.”
-Hunter S. Thompson
"No. Try not. Do... or do not. There is no try."
-Yoda

[CornishChris 5]

Agreed, both.

Did a jump on Saturday with some Swiss guys who were jumping metres. We agreed breakoff at 5k feet and did a check in the plane as we passed through to make sure they were happy with the altitude because for some reason on the ground they both read 0...

Edited to add - incidentally we use feet and metres in Europe, not meters...

CJP

Gods don't kill people. People with Gods kill people

[format 0]

Quote

I think you mean "3", not "0.3"

Then you can take away that add/take away a zero step.

No, I actually meant 0.3048
(inside brackets is altenative use of 3 with zeros in/out - easier to me)

So 10,000ft*0.3=3000m (3048)
and 4500m/0.3=15,000ft (14,763.77)

Never mind, you got it and you made me smile Nice nick btw

What goes around, comes later.

[jurgencamps 0]

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In a curiousity ...at European Dropzones , Altimeters usage in Feet or Meters ?

Both, some in feet, some in meters. In Belgium most will use feet.

[shropshire 0]

I prefere feet ... you 'seem' to fall further

(.)Y(.)
Chivalry is not dead; it only sleeps for want of work to do. - Jerome K Jerome

[Andy_Copland 0]

Who needs the math?

You just stay put when everyone starts starts to fly away from you and pull the string thing that opens the shoot; before the the black needle starts to go into the red area on the hand clock.

1338

People aint made of nothin' but water and shit.

Until morale improves, the beatings will continue.

[shropshire 0]

Quote

Who needs the math?

You just stay put when everyone starts starts to fly away from you and pull the string thing that opens the shoot; before the the black needle starts to go into the red area on the hand clock.

It's fucking mathS

(.)Y(.)
Chivalry is not dead; it only sleeps for want of work to do. - Jerome K Jerome

[Andy_Copland 0]

Shouldn't you be asleep in a ditch somewhere under a bridge with locals calling an ambulance for ya?

People say dont do in air rigging, well fuck my math(s) is much worse than my rigging. I know which one id rather do at 120mph

1338

People aint made of nothin' but water and shit.

Until morale improves, the beatings will continue.

[riggerrob 558]

Forget two different altimeters or doing freefall math.
Keep it simple skydiver.
Just buy one altimeter and stick with it.
Others will understand if your altimeter only reads feet.
Most europeans are bright enough to ignore the difference between feet and metres.
Back when I jumped in Europe, I was often the only guy in the formation with a "feet" altimeter. Nobody else cared.
All they cared about was if I was still going fast in the red arc.

[ps5601 0]

The great thing I've seen on continental European DZs is that you generally manifest in metric, so people like the Brits have to convert feet to meters if you want to altitudes other than max. (ie 12500ft is 3800m). Manifest tells the pilot who converts it to feet as aircraft are made to the global standard (US) who work in feet.

BTW European law means that we are not supposed to use imperial measurements any more in the UK. As such we manifest in increments of 0.3048m.

Blue skies

Paul

[phoenixlpr 0]

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Manifest tells the pilot who converts it to feet as aircraft are made to the global standard (US) who work in feet.

FYI gliders are using metric instuments too.

I'm not really sure but Russian made planes might have metric instruments too.

[JohnMitchell 14]

Sounds like the story of a U.S. crew flying in Europe.

ATC "Descend and maintain 3000, altimeter 1013."

Pilot "Uh, we need that in inches." [altimeter setting 29.92 in inches of Hg]

ATC "Roger, Descend and maintain 36,000 inches."

[dragon2 0]

In The Netherlands we use feet, but the gliders use metric.

ciel bleu,
Saskia

[BenediktDE 2]

Germany and France use metric altimeters, I am not sure about Spain.

For every complex problem there is an answer that is clear, simple, and wrong.

[Liemberg 0]

Is Charles von Sury still jumping?

He used to have an altimeter that was neither feet nor meter but a picture of a skull with crossed bones underneath. The first bone the dail encountered was "split the formation" while the second one was "open the parachute".

One of the main advantages of that particular altimeter - other than skipping feet / meter differences altogether - was that it really brought the "Black Death" aspect of the sport to the jumpers attention...

"Whoever in discussion adduces authority uses not intellect but memory." - Leonardo da Vinci
A thousand words...

[dragon2 0]

Didn't alti2 have a picture of an alti with 3 pictures of nice girls/angels and one with a girl/devil? Loved that one

ciel bleu,
Saskia

[kelpdiver 2]

Quote

Didn't alti2 have a picture of an alti with 3 pictures of nice girls/angels and one with a girl/devil? Loved that one

Alti-2 will still create custom plates free ($12 S&h) for anyone that wants it. You do give up the night glow, if your model had it.

http://www.alti-2.com/sport/galaxy/index.php
The devil girl pic is shown here.

[mircan 0]

By going around different DZs here, I concluded that most people in these part of Europe prefer to use metric altis as they were thought during FJC so they just stick with it because it is more comfortable for them. I did it too when I started.
Now, i use feet, both in visual and in audible altis. I read a lot of literature/forums and they are all in feet/inch measuring units.

dudeist skydiver #42