What is your hard deck for exiting with a tandem? (non emergency)

[ShotterMG 0]

Mine is 7 grand. I think it's a bit conservative but reasonable. What's your lowest non emergency tandem exit?

[VTmotoMike08 0]

I'm pretty sure its 8000 at our DZ because we want our students to feel like they got their money's worth. Might be 8500, I forget.

[VideoFly 0]

Six feet...for those who refuse to jump and land with the plane.

[pchapman 261]

The policy at the DZ I'm at is 8500', just to be consistent, even though it is somewhat arbitrary.

But the point is to inform the student and let them choose whether to go for it or come back another day. Once (before the policy) I did go from 6700' on a day that was so hazy it was turning IFR.

[Abedy 0]

FL 120 is the "lowest" at our DZ. Standard is FL 140.

There are folks with an AN-2 next to our DZ who do tandems from 2500 m (~8000 ft). That would be my hard deck or lowest tandem exit altitude as well but I would do it only if absolutely necessary - less freefall time, less fun

The lowest exit altitude by law is 2000 m (~6500 ft) but I doubt anyone does tandems from that altitude on a regular basis

The official hard deck for releasing is 1400 m (~4500 ft) in Germany btw.

The sky is not the limit. The ground is.

The Society of Skydiving Ducks

[koppel 3]

worked at a DZ that offered 6,000 tandems

not sure if they still do.

Got out after a take off emergency once the pilot had things under some form of control at 5,000 happily too. None of us wanted to land in the plane or spend longer in it than needed on that flight.... bloody door stuck on the cresco that jump too

I like my canopy...


...it lets me down.

[Andrewwhyte 1]

6000 Ft.
I have done so with an informed student rather than land. 7500ft is the lowest intended altitude I will board the plane for.

[slotperfect 7]

The lowest ceiling we will intentionally board a plane to jump beneath is 8000 FT AGL.

My personal minimum intentional exit with a first time student is 6000 FT.

If we run into prohibitive cloud layers on a load otherwise intended to go to altitude, I will poll the TMs as to their personal minimums and we will use the highest one as the minimum or the group. That is usually about 7000 FT AGL. We basically team up with the least experienced TI to make a group decision.

Arrive Safely

John

[livendive 8]

I've gotten out at 6,000 and have boarded with no expectation of anything above 7,000. If the plan is full altitude, I give my student a choice on anything between 7 and 9 (e.g. "we can ride the plane down for a full refund or we can skydive from 8,000 with a shorter freefall, your choice"). That said, I won't get out below the comfort level of any other TI on the plane, so if one guy chickens out at 8k, we all ride it down. It just feels like it would be unprofessional and potentially actionable if anything went wrong.

Blues,
Dave

"I AM A PROFESSIONAL EXTREME ATHLETE!"
(drink Mountain Dew)

[riggerrob 558]

My personal minimum used to be 7,000 feet AGL, but since the tandem manufacturers now recommend 7,500 feet minimum, I just raised my standards.

Back - when I was young and beautiful - I did a few tandems form 6,000 feet and one from 5,000 feet. I did not enjoy those low exits, and the students never "woke up" in freefall.

IOW you need a minimum of 8,000 feet for students to recover from sensory overload, open their eyes and enjoy the view.

[pirana 0]

I must be a sissy. I want 9K.

" . . . the lust for power can be just as completely satisfied by suggesting people into loving their servitude as by flogging them and kicking them into obedience." -- Aldous Huxley

[councilman24 36]

You were never beautiful,


and I'm not sure about young!

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