New Royal Caribbean Ships promise an onboard Windtunnel

[Maxx 1]

No shit...

http://www.chriscruises.net/2013/04/new-royal-caribbean-ships-promise/

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RipCord by iFly, the first skydiving experience at sea which allows everyone from first-time flyers to seasoned skydivers to enjoy the sheer thrill and exhilaration of skydiving in a safe, controlled, and simulated environment.

[shorehambeach 9]

http://www.hipgeo.com/r/6p2bso

Yep.

[adamUK 3]

Holy crap. I'd be bankrupt after that holiday. Hope it's got enough power for head down.

[Remster 24]

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Holy crap. I'd be bankrupt after that holiday. Hope it's got enough power for head down.

Allegedly, use of the tunnel would be inclusive of the cruise package.

Considering these monster have move than 5,000 passenger, I could see there would be a cap on how much time you could fly.

Remster

[adamUK 3]

If that is the case then I will do the night shift. It will be probably cheaper than flying in a land based tunnel.

I'd be responsible for the ship arriving late I'd be such a drain on the power supply.

[cpoxon 0]

This is probably a stupid question but what happens inside a tunnel if it is pitching around? Is the flyer unaffected in that they are relative to the flow rather than what's going on outside?

Skydiving Fatalities - Cease not to learn 'til thou cease to live

[cpoxon 0]

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Holy crap. I'd be bankrupt after that holiday. Hope it's got enough power for head down.

Allegedly, use of the tunnel would be inclusive of the cruise package.

Considering these monster have move than 5,000 passenger, I could see there would be a cap on how much time you could fly.

But what's the demographic of the passengers? I've never been on a cruise but my parents have (a lot), and if that is any indication, the majority wouldn't be inclined to use it much, if at all?

Skydiving Fatalities - Cease not to learn 'til thou cease to live

[davelepka 4]

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If that is the case then I will do the night shift

I'm not sure if they'll run it 24/7, the noise might be a problem at night for some of the passengers.

I have a feeling that tunnel time will be included in certain ($$$$) 'packages' that include upgraded cabins and fancy dinners, etc. It might also be an 'ala carte' option to add to your cruise, but I just can't see it being a 'open door' for everyone to walk up and fly.

I would also be very surprised if they went with a high power tunnel. It got to be cheaper, quieter, smaller, and use less power to limit it to belly fly speeds.

It's a slick gimick, but I don't think it's going to be something jumpers will be able to 'use' for anything beyond a 'ride'.

[padraigbrowne 0]

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This is probably a stupid question but what happens inside a tunnel if it is pitching around? Is the flyer unaffected in that they are relative to the flow rather than what's going on outside?

My instinct says the flyer should remain "still" as he is not physically connected to the ship , and the walls should bash into him
But on the other hand , have you ever put a pinpong ball on the jet of a hair dryer and move it around , ball remains in center of air flow

[IMGR2 0]

from the videos I saw of them flying, this tunnel is open air.

BTW, the wife and I are avid cruisers with Royal Caribbean, we have already booked our Quantum of the Seas cruise.

[Remster 24]

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This is probably a stupid question but what happens inside a tunnel if it is pitching around? Is the flyer unaffected in that they are relative to the flow rather than what's going on outside?

My instinct says the flyer should remain "still" as he is not physically connected to the ship , and the walls should bash into him
But on the other hand , have you ever put a pinpong ball on the jet of a hair dryer and move it around , ball remains in center of air flow

Well, as the ship sways, so would the air stream... So the flyer would (well, im my mind anyways)get some destabilizing force acting on in, ie, the airflow being out-of-line from gravity.

Remster

[cpoxon 0]

Interestingly, waivers against injury/death due to negligence are "unenforceable on the high seas".

Skydiving Fatalities - Cease not to learn 'til thou cease to live

[faulk04 0]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GbSaP5qYPW4

2.5 meter diameter

[Remster 24]

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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GbSaP5qYPW4

2.5 meter diameter

8.2 feet???? That's crazy small.

Remster

[Bluhdow 31]

Just over 8 feet? Weak.

I suspect that the more we learn about this (size, speed, price) the less attractive it will be.

It's designed to attract families onto the ship. Tunnel flyers were not on top of the priority list and the design will reflect that.

That said, it's probably an awesome gig to be a tunnel instructor on the ship!

Apex BASE
#1816

[Remster 24]

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That said, it's probably an awesome gig to be a tunnel instructor on the ship!

Oh yeah... Bluehair after Bluehair... Oh yeah, the glamour!

Remster

[DigitalDave 0]

It does seem like Bernoulli's principle would cause the flyer to stay in the center. At least in theory.

[IMGR2 0]

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That said, it's probably an awesome gig to be a tunnel instructor on the ship!

Oh yeah... Bluehair after Bluehair... Oh yeah, the glamour!

HEY! I take offense to that. The wife and I cruise on Royal Caribbean at the least twice a year. Tons of fun and its safe to say 70% of the passengers are 30's and 40's.

That's ok with me though, the less skydivers on the ship with me, the better I look. Lol

[IMGR2 0]

Just got verification it is a 10 foot recirculating.

[Remster 24]

10 is better than 8

Remster

[Rinc 0]

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This is probably a stupid question but what happens inside a tunnel if it is pitching around? Is the flyer unaffected in that they are relative to the flow rather than what's going on outside?

It does seem like Bernoulli's principle would cause the flyer to stay in the center. At least in theory.

I disagree. Let's say the ship tilts 5º to one side. At that point, the wind flow is 5º off of perpendicular, but the pull of gravity is still straight down. I.E. the wind flow is no longer aligned with the pull of gravity. So gravity is going to pull the flyer down at a 5º angle relative to the wind - like being in a track position with the upper body tilted downward. And the jumper will slide towards the wall on the downward-tilted side of the tunnel.

If I could draw a picture it would be a lot easier to see. But I can't draw...

Imagine that ping pong ball balanced in a column of air from the hair dryer pointing straight upwards. Now slowly tilt the hair dryer to one side. What's going to happen? The ping poing ball will be blown off to the side in the direction of the tilt.

In all reality though, a ship that big probably is unlikely to be tilting much, and the flyer will likely be unaffected by such things.

[IMGR2 0]

Well I have many days at sea on Royal Caribbean and I can tell you for a fact that the ships don't tilt at all. There is always a chance but the odds are extremely low.

[BillyVance 34]

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10 is better than 8

Still not quite large enough for 2 skydivers to do RW, but of course, that's not their target for customers.

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

[Rinc 0]

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Well I have many days at sea on Royal Caribbean and I can tell you for a fact that the ships don't tilt at all. There is always a chance but the odds are extremely low.

Maybe if the ship was going down like the Titanic, but then, you wouldn't want to be in the wind tunnel at a time like that...

[Andy9o8 0]

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Interestingly, waivers against injury/death due to negligence are "unenforceable on the high seas".

Aw, jeez. So much for that DZ out in international waters I was thinking of starting.