WL question

[woodpecker 0]

Would a 1.2WL actually be considered a big/large (not sure of word to use here) wing load?

Canopy will be a pilot if that makes a difference.

SONIC WOODY #146

There is a fine line between cockiness and confidence -- which side of the line are you on?

[Hausse 0]

Depends on your jump numbers. It wouldn't be with 386 jumps.

[mr2mk1g 10]

I would use the terms high/low.

Depending on your competence, it would probably absolutely fine at nearly 400 jumps.

I tend to get people to use the following as a rule of thumb. It's not by any means the whole story of course, but it's a helpful starting point, especially for people fresh to the sport.

Take the number after the point. That's the number of jumps in hundreds you should have to jump that canopy.

So a 1:1.2 wing loading would indicate a starting point for your consideration of a min of about 200 jumps. 1.1 would indicate 100 jumps. 1.3, 300 jumps and so on. You could even take it further and say 1:1.25 indicates a 250 jumps min.

It's a rule of thumb and no more - it starts to stop being sensible after you get above 400-500 jumps for example... but by then people should be big enough to work it out for themselves.

It can also be seen by some as being rather conservative. No problem with that - people always overestimate their abilities, and this is only a rule of thumb after all.

[BillyVance 34]

Can you imagine if, and I know it becomes skewed beyond 1.8 or so, that rule of thumb were interpreted to mean if you had 10,000 jumps, you could have a wingloading of 11.0 to 1? Holy Shit, the canopy could be 1 to 3 sq foot in size.

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

[kallend 1,644]

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Canopy will be a pilot if that makes a difference.

Depends what he/she flies.

I was (still am) a licensed glider pilot when learning to skydive. I found it really helped a lot since I already knew: how to fly a pattern, how to read a wind indicator, how to judge where I was going to land, how to handle wind drift, how to judge altitude, how to flare, where to flare... Many of the skills you need as a canopy pilot are also skills you need as an airplane (particularly glider) pilot.

OTOH, if all he/she flies are 747s or B52s, that might not help at all.

...

The only sure way to survive a canopy collision is not to have one.

[Squeak 17]

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Depends on your jump numbers. It wouldn't be with 386 jumps.

i would say it more depends on how you fly your canopy more so than the number of time you exit the plane

You are not now, nor will you ever be, good enough to not die in this sport (Sparky)
My Life ROCKS!
How's yours doing?

[henryvillar 0]

I think he was refering to the canopy model.

The opinions expressed herein are not necessarily those of my employer, not necessarily mine, and probably not necessary.

[kallend 1,644]

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I think he was refering to the canopy model.

Ooops! I assumed the lower case "p" was intentional, not a typo, and interpreted "will be" as "wannabe"

...

The only sure way to survive a canopy collision is not to have one.

[DougH 270]

No way to say, especially on the internet. Too many variables.

For instance: is the pilot a "dumb as rocks" toggle monkey? Or does the pilot behave in the patern, fly predictably, and has some accuracy skill?

Are you looking for some sort of assurance for some doubts that you have about your new purchase? Is that the purpose of this thread?

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

[Hausse 0]

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Depends on your jump numbers. It wouldn't be with 386 jumps.

i would say it more depends on how you fly your canopy more so than the number of time you exit the plane

I agree but he's asking this question on an online forum where nobody knows how he flies so using a general WL chart is about all that can be done.

[cocheese 0]

If you can't land in front of the dz pop machine like you're in a Mountain Dew commercial, then you don't need to down size.

[ficus 0]

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Can you imagine if, and I know it becomes skewed beyond 1.8 or so, that rule of thumb were interpreted to mean if you had 10,000 jumps, you could have a wingloading of 11.0 to 1? Holy Shit, the canopy could be 1 to 3 sq foot in size.

Yeah, if your exit weight is 11-33 lbs.

[woodpecker 0]

Just to clear this up....I should have done so in the beginning knowing this crowd ...

This question is simply a question on the numbers.

Not my flying, abilities, experience, current WL, etc. Curiosity actually. With the rush for jumpers to WL canopies and seeing a 1:1 becoming a RARE occasion, I was just wondering if 1:2 was considered high/low.

I'm not worried about me and the rule of thumb was actually quite interesting. Thanks for the replies.

SONIC WOODY #146

There is a fine line between cockiness and confidence -- which side of the line are you on?

[phoenixlpr 0]

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Would a 1.2WL actually be considered a big/large (not sure of word to use here) wing load?

Flying is not about numbers. WL is only one parameter of the equation, there are lot more.

[Chubba 0]

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Take the number after the point. That's the number of jumps in hundreds you should have to jump that canopy.

So you have no problem with someone getting onto a 1.0 when they get their A?

[woodpecker 0]

[phoenixlpr 0]

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So you have no problem with someone getting onto a 1.0 when they get their A?

One with "C" license -licensed skydiver- in Finland allowed to use a main canopy from some list( square/ tapered) < WL1.3 .

Notice that clubs are close to the see level.

[kallend 1,644]

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Flying is not about numbers. WL is only one parameter of the equation, there are lot more.

[mircan 0]

I had an unusual approach to this "wingload" story...
I jumped big-ass accuracy canopies (280+ sqft) until i got approx. the same jump numbers as you.
Then my first next was 1.1 WL (70-80 jumps), and now 1.6 WL (~ 60 jumps).
I noticed that the abilities that i gained from jumping accuracy jumps (flying slow in deep brakes, landing on a dime...) helped me a LOT when learning to fly smaller canopies / bigger WL.
So maybe your story is similar...
my2c

dudeist skydiver #42

[mr2mk1g 10]

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So you have no problem with someone getting onto a 1.0 when they get their A?

Maybe.

Like I say - it's a rule of thumb, to be used as a starting point for consideration of the question as a whole. It's also a 'never exceed' rule - it doesn't say what canopy you should be on, only what canopy you definately shouldn't be on.

Someone who's newly qualified, with maybe 50 jumps and who is looking for their own gear... a 1:1.0 wingloading is a common starting point for don't exceed advice... though that's not always going to be appropriate - all the variables should be considered, not just the wingloading. Wingloading is only one set of figures in a much bigger equation.

They must also step down to the 1:1 loading in a sensible manner, as they'll usually be on a wingloading as a student of less than 1:0.85 (UK at least).