Night jump light recommendations

[mxk 1]

I'm planning on doing my first night jumps in two weeks. I read through most of the previous threads on this topic, but a lot of the links to specific products are broken. Would appreciate any advice on what lights to get and where/how to attach them. I would prefer to avoid taping anything to my helmet.

The DZ wants us to have two chem lights (red and green) and a strobe light. I can buy chem lights from Amazon, but not sure of the best method to mount them. ParaGear sells a small strobe light that might do the job after I swap the clear lens for a red one. Does anyone have first hand experience with it?

[skytribe 16]

Simple solution - duct tape chem lights onto you arms or legs on your jumpsuit.

[hillson 0]

I have that strobe. Works fine. Why would you swap the lens to red? For one it will be harder to see for the other jumpers in the air and I don't know if it would meet the 3 mile viz requirements (hell, who know if most cheap strobes do).

I mount mine on the left lateral with the strobe part facing down.

[mxk 1]

hillson

Why would you swap the lens to red?

To preserve my night vision in case of accidental exposure to the light. Don't really like the idea of a green chem light for the same reason.

[hillson 0]

You're probably overthinking it a bit...besides it is so other people and things in the sky can see you after deployment. Likewise Id guess that other jumpers on the load will have white lights and will be looking for flashing white under canopy - not red.

At any rate the more annoying think is the dummy that forgets to cover his glow sticks in the plane...green in particular is bright. Or the dummy that sets off his strobe. Judt prepare for it I guess.

[peek 20]

hillson

... I don't know if it would meet the 3 mile viz requirements (hell, who know if most cheap strobes do).

Exactly. Only a xenon strobe is going to meet the requirements in a small size. Anyone who does not believe that needs to go do an experiment at night to test it. 3 miles is a loooong way to see a light.

[monkycndo 0]

Couple of questions.

Why do you not want to tape strobe to your helmet?
On all of my night jumps, I gaffer taped the strobe to the top of my helmet so it could be seen for close to 360 degrees and would not have any effect on my night vision. Depending on canopy color, the strobe flash can light up you canopy so others can see you better. I have seen some people hang the strobe from a short lanyard below their shoe. After deploying, remove strobe from your pocket, turn on the strobe and drop it.

Where does your DZO want the chem sticks mounted?
Chem sticks have limited impact on night vision as long as you don't stare at them close up. One method for mounting can be everyone mounts the same color on the chest strap horizontally and the second on the back of the helmet vertically. This will tell you if the jumper you see is facing towards you or away when under canopy.

You need to have the chem stick broken and installed while riding to altitude. Cover the sticks with a piece of tape to block the light, and then remove the tape just before exiting the plane.

If you have a Dollar Store near you, you can often get the chem sticks for $1 each.

50 donations so far. Give it a try.

You know you want to spank it
Jump an Infinity

[councilman24 36]

You don't need the strobe until after opening. Put it on a lanyard attached to leg or chest strap, stow in a pocket or jumpsuit. On opening turn on strobe and dangle beneath you. Guarantees 360 visability out of your vision. Leave it white. On landing you can drag it or pick it up and throw it over your shoulder. Chemlite allows jumper to jumper visability in freefall but useless under canopy, IMHO. Remeber you need enough ambient artificial light to check main. Chemlight on helmet is enough. I've seen some attach chemlight to riser to follow cutaway. Insurance.If you want it. May or may not see it.

I'm old for my age.
Terry Urban
D-8631
FAA DPRE

[mxk 1]

monkycndo

Why do you not want to tape strobe to your helmet?

I have a Bonehead Rev2 helmet, which doesn't have any free space on top with the visor lifted, and I don't want a potential snag hazard on the back.

monkycndo

Where does your DZO want the chem sticks mounted?

Don't know as of right now, but I will find out this week.

Is there an advantage to using chem lights as opposed to LED glow sticks of the same form-factor? Seems like it would be a lot less hassle to flip a switch under canopy than mess around with covers, but I don't know if there is a significant difference in brightness.

[mxk 1]

monkycndo

Where does your DZO want the chem sticks mounted?

Red on the chest strap, green on the back of the rig (not really sure how). We can use battery-powered glow sticks instead of actual chem lights. Color of the strobe is our choice as long as it meets the visibility requirement - I'm sticking with red.

So at this point, I think I'd rather find LED glow sticks that I can just turn on under canopy without worrying about covering up chem lights, and a good xenon strobe. I'll have a small flashlight in my pocket for inspecting the canopy.

I have zero intentions of doing group jumps at night, so visibility in freefall is less of a concern. For that matter, I plan on doing either a low pass or a high pull, maybe first one then the other, depending on what the winds are doing. My strategy for avoiding other jumpers is to not be anywhere near them

Regarding dangling the strobe below me, there seems to have been at least one fatality from doing something similar, though I haven't found any details.

[Hellis 0]

mxk

***Where does your DZO want the chem sticks mounted?

Red on the chest strap, green on the back of the rig (not really sure how). We can use battery-powered glow sticks instead of actual chem lights. Color of the strobe is our choice as long as it meets the visibility requirement - I'm sticking with red.

So at this point, I think I'd rather find LED glow sticks that I can just turn on under canopy without worrying about covering up chem lights, and a good xenon strobe. I'll have a small flashlight in my pocket for inspecting the canopy.

I have zero intentions of doing group jumps at night, so visibility in freefall is less of a concern. For that matter, I plan on doing either a low pass or a high pull, maybe first one then the other, depending on what the winds are doing. My strategy for avoiding other jumpers is to not be anywhere near them

Regarding dangling the strobe below me, there seems to have been at least one fatality from doing something similar, though I haven't found any details.


http://www.romad.com/romad.com/finaljumper/obit.php?usernumber=34

[DougH 270]

Dangling the strobe is sport death, but I have done it for many many jumps.

I use this strobe http://www.paragear.com/skydiving/10000086/L1458/

I installed a length of poly cord on the strobe that has a loop on the end that allows me to hitch it on my chest strap. The cord is wrapped around the strobe and then secured to the strobe with several sigma tandem bands, and also to the chest strap with several rubber bands.

It is a risk for sure, but I find it to be very secure with the multiple stow bands. It is secure enough that it is a work out to deploy after being open.

I open, pull it free of the chest strap, roll the tandem stow bands off the cord, close my eyes, turn it on and drop it between my legs. On landing it just bounces below me. If it was to snag on object it would break the light weight cord.

"The restraining order says you're only allowed to touch me in freefall"
=P

[riggerrob 558]

How about sewing slender pockets on the outside of your jumpsuit?
Use white canopy fabric.
I'd your suit is loose enough, you can crack the chem-lights while riding in the airplane.

[shadeland 5]

I've done about 8 night jumps so far, and here's what I've learned:

Chem lights are nearly worthless under canopy. They're difficult to see, and by the time you see them you're probably dangerously close. They're marginally good under freefall.

Strobes are not actually required per the FAR (in the US at least), and I'm not a big fan of them as the only light. They're better than chemlights, but if you jump an area with a lot of antennas, it can be difficult to discern them from stationary strobes. Also you have to keep your eye on the strobe source for a second or two to track it's actual direction, distracting you from other areas of the sky.

The real requirement is: "the person or object descending from the aircraft displays a light that is visible for at least 3 statute miles." So it doesn't have to be a strobe, just visible for 3 statue miles.

What I've found works the best is LED lights. Something like this: http://www.amazon.com/Brightz-Ltd-Cosmic-Bicycle-Light/dp/B00WN3NHVQ/

You can wrap it around your leg pretty easily, and you'll be easy to spot under canopy as well as in freefall. Make sure to turn it on just before you set up at the door, as it's a little bright.

They're like $10-20, and will make sure you're seen.

If you want to have fun, the EL wire or EL tape is also pretty fun (TRON lights).

Another thing is to tape a regular flashlight to the back of your helmet, shining it up. That will illuminate your canopy (when you're looking ahead). This also helps increase your visibility under canopy.

[yeyo 1]

If you are doing 2 solo jumps, you are overthinking

Just use packing rubber bands and put a red stick in your chest strap, the green on the left legpad facing back, and tie the strobe to your left hip somewhere with more rubber bands.

HISPA #93
DS #419.5

[jumpsalot-2 2]

yeyo

If you are doing 2 solo jumps, you are overthinking

Just use packing rubber bands and put a red stick in your chest strap, the green on the left legpad facing back, and tie the strobe to your left hip somewhere with more rubber bands.

This is a set up I have seen and used. Then under canopy, if you have a red strobe in front of you, you are flying face to face with another jumper. If you see green, you are following another canopy. Red for STOP, Green for GO.

Life is short ... jump often.

[chowchow 0]

mxk,

I have a close to 200 night jumps around the world in group sizes ranging from solo to 30+ people, both military and civilian jumps. I have read many of the comments here and the best advice I could give from my experience:

Red and Green glow sticks will have limited impact upon your night vision. Red torch lenses were/are used by the military to preserve your night vision, so is green, as red makes reading brown contour lines on a map hard. What is more important is taking time to allow your eyes acclimate to the low light prior to jumping. i.e. not sitting in a bright lit hangar for 20 mins prior to taking off.

Positioning glow sticks really needs one thing. Everyone being the same and being briefed so every one is on the same page. I have found through experience the following is the optimal position for glow sticks. A red glow stick on the chest strap, and a green on the reserve flap held in place by two packing rubber bands works best (it illuminates and reflects of the reserve part of the container increasing visibility). And no, the rubber band will not impede your reserve pin on a malfunction (fact!). Green you're good, red you're dead! If you see green you are behind another jumper, if you see red turn right as you are heading toward another jumper. Simple and effective.

As for a strobe on the top of the helmet. This in addition to being seen itself also illuminates the bottom surface of the canopy with each flash increasing the visibility. It doesn't make it a disco, just a little more visible.

Some people have indicated they don't think a strobe is needed or of little use. I would argue that the other function a strobe serves is for getting attention in the event of an off dz landing of if you are injured on the dz away from the immediate lit landing area. A good SOP for night jumps is strobes on until landing then switch off once safe. A flashing strobe lets the safety staff know there is a problem/injury out there, or lets the plane vector in on you if off dz.

I hope this helps, but you should also talk to your DZ staff prior to the event to be aware of their requirements for the night.

Blue skies, Bright moons.

[BrianM 1]

chowchow

As for a strobe on the top of the helmet. This in addition to being seen itself also illuminates the bottom surface of the canopy with each flash increasing the visibility. It doesn't make it a disco, just a little more visible.

I use a Lightman strobe on top of my helmet. I made a mount for it with a rare earth magnet (similar to the regular magnet mount that is included, using this, this, and a screw), and tape a second rare earth magnet inside the helmet (between the shell and the liner). I keep the strobe in a pocket until I'm under canopy, then pull it out, turn it on, and stick it on my helmet.

I've had lots of unsolicited comments about how visible the setup is due to the canopy lighting up. Also lots of comments about how cool it looks!

chowchow

Some people have indicated they don't think a strobe is needed or of little use. I would argue that the other function a strobe serves is for getting attention in the event of an off dz landing of if you are injured on the dz away from the immediate lit landing area. A good SOP for night jumps is strobes on until landing then switch off once safe. A flashing strobe lets the safety staff know there is a problem/injury out there, or lets the plane vector in on you if off dz.

Yep. I landed in the forest some distance from the airport on a night jump a few years ago (after a double mal). The pilot easily spotted my strobe and was able to tell searchers where to look. He couldn't see my glow sticks at all. Without the strobe, rescue would have taken a lot longer. Which is good - that bear was scaring me!

"It's amazing what you can learn while you're not talking." - Skydivesg