pilots

[lazerq3 0]

My dad is a pilot of a small acrobatic plane. My question is would it be leagal for him to take someone up (say me when I get good) and jump or does faa have certain regs. I read in the skydivers handbook about being a jump pilot but does that only apply to work at a DZ?
jason

[skreamer 1]

Dunno, but why do pilots always wear baseball caps?
To hide the lobotomy scars!
(I'm sure your dad will like that one...) /s

[skybytch 259]

As far as I know it is totally legal as long as you have the permission of the person who owns the place you are landing. Might be kind of hard to exit a small aerobatic plane though... check it out with gear on before you decide to jump out of it.
pull and flare,
lisa

[Aviatrr 0]

Quote

My dad is a pilot of a small acrobatic plane. My question is would it be leagal for him to take someone up (say me when I get good) and jump or does faa have certain regs. I read in the skydivers handbook about being a jump pilot but does that only apply to work at a DZ?

I wouldn't try it, if I were you.. Legally, there is nothing wrong with it.. Well, that is assuming that he notifies ATC of his intentions to drop a jumper.. Is it safe? No way.. Too many potential problems.. What happens when you open the canopy in flight? Chances are it goes away completely.. Open cockpit? Ok.. What happens when you bail....hit the tail, perhaps? Get caught up in tension lines between the wings on a biplane? Hit the tailwheel?
Did you see the episode of Senseless Acts of Video when Troy "ejected" from the L39? In reality, all they did was had the pilot push a couple negative G's and Troy pushed off from the seat(with the canopy removed).. See how close he came to the tail? Pretty damn close.. It's a big risk..
A few years ago, I was flying a Pitts S2B.. I was over a lake, beyond gliding distance of the land.. (A common comment from Pitts pilots is..."to establish the right glide attitude after an engine failure, throw a brick out and follow it down"..) Well, guess what? Engine quit.. I wasn't about to ditch that airplane when I had a perfectly good parachute on my back.. I tried re-starting the engine - no dice.. Around 3,000ft (engine quit at 7500ft), I cut the canopy loose, and prepared to bail.. The canopy nailed the tail after it separated - and broke into a few pieces.. Damn, I was not looking forward to bailing out - trying to miss that tail.. Ok, coming up on 2,000ft.. Try the engine one more time.. Well, it finally caught as I was passing 2k.. I poured the coals to her, leveled off at 1800ft, and made a bee-line for land(about 2 miles away).. The oil pressure was 0.. The engine quit again about a minute after passing the shoreline, and I put it down in a nice, long, smooth field.. The tail had a bit of minor damage from the canopy, but other than that, all was good.. I thank God I didn't have to bail out of that one.. Do you want to end up like that canopy?
Mike

[lazerq3 0]

First off dont get me wrong I completly know what your saying about the safety issues, however his plane is a wing over the top, not a byplane so you could exit hanging off the strut like you would a cesna. Secondly I dont plan on doing this any time soon as I am just getting ready for AFF in the next week or two. So it would be a loooooooong time before I would even think of trying it. I was just curious if it is leagal for future reference. But I do apprecaite all the input and advice!!!!
jason

[Aviatrr 0]

Quote

First off dont get me wrong I completly know what your saying about the safety issues, however his plane is a wing over the top, not a byplane so you could exit hanging off the strut like you would a cesna. Secondly I dont plan on doing this any time soon as I am just getting ready for AFF in the next week or two. So it would be a loooooooong time before I would even think of trying it. I was just curious if it is leagal for future reference. But I do apprecaite all the input and advice!!!!

Well, a couple more points.. If it's a high wing, it's probably something along the lines of a Citabria or Decathalon.. If so, I wouldn't hang off the strut - they may not be as strong as Cessna struts.. The other point is that you may have a hell of a time getting out to the strut.. You would need to have the door removed (try opening a forward opening door in flight and climbing out), and have something to step on during the climbout..
It'll be much cheaper and safer to pay for a ride from an airplane equipped for skydiving..
Mike

[flyboy62000 0]

If it is a Cessna and the pilot owns it and wants to drop you you need to do a few things. Most single engine Cessnas can legally be flown with one door removed without special permission. You just pull the pins out of the door hinges to remove it. The exit would be the same as any other jump Cessna minus the jump step. It is possible to jump from a Cessna with the regular door on, but it is difficult and there are a lot of potential problems associated with it (read it's dangerous). The pilot should file a NOTAM for parachute jumping and get permission from the airport manager if you will be jumping onto an airport. The pilot must be in contact with the agency controlling the airspace and notify them of his intentions. That's about it. If you can find a safe airplane to jump from and a pilot that will meet these requirements for the flight then go for it, but paying to jump at a regular DZ would probably be much easier and safer.
Blue Skies,
Adam

[TripleF 0]

I don't have the faintest idea.... 50 (i think - am I still a newbie??)
Triple F

[Divadiver 0]

Hey Triple F!!
Newbie here with only 11 (this makes 12), but I'm working on it!!
Divadiver

[Divadiver 0]

lazerq3:
During your AFF progression you'll have a briefing with the DZ pilot. Go ahead and ask him/her about jumping from a plane that's not at the DZ and just watch his/her eyes widen and grow to the size of dinner plates!! It'll be fun!!
Divadiver