2nd jump

[Brz 0]

I did a tandem jump last year and am going again soon. Someone at work (who was probably trying to scare me) said in a tandem jump a situation might come up where say an uncontrollable spin happens or something along those lines happens and the only thing the instructor can do is cut the other person away to save his life. Has anything like this ever happened? I couldn't find anything online about it. Also (sorry for the long post) why doesn't the student for lack of a better word get a helmet or a back up shoot?

[Bealio 0]

This is true. Fortunetely for me, I've only had to cut away 2 students while I was learning, but I'm good at controlling the spin now.

[Brz 0]

Glad your improving! Practice makes perfect.

[shorehambeach 9]

Brz

At most dropzones you can pay an extra $20 to have the cameraman catch you if the tandem master has to cut you away.

Joking aside - I wouldn't worry to much - each dropzone has a soft landing area for passengers who have been cut away mid skydive to land. A tandem instructor is only permitted to cut you away if he is directly over this soft area. If he cuts you away over anywhere else then he risks losing his ratings and won't be able to take any more passengers.

Good luck.

[monkycndo 0]

They only get a backup shoot if they bring their own weapon & ammo and have a CCW permit.

50 donations so far. Give it a try.

You know you want to spank it
Jump an Infinity

[jimmytavino 16]

the last time I jumped a Back Up Shoot...it was a 28 foot 7TU..and it was decades ago...
I DO however, try to wear a helmet on every jump.. it holds my audible.
good luck.. GO on the skydive. I do NOT think a TM will EVER cut away the passenger,,, " to save his OWN Life "... Listen more closely, NEXT time, to the pre jump instruction... ask questions.

[Trafficdiver 8]

That's not something you have to worry about with modern tandem chutes.

What you really need to worry about the the tandem instructors gay lover thinking you two are having an affair and shooting both of you in the landing area.

[TheCaptain 2]

Brz

the only thing the instructor can do is cut the other person away to save his life.

There is not a student cutway handle. You are securely hooked to the actual tandem rig by 4 connection points. Once you are under canopy the only way a tandem instructor "could" get rid of you is to lift your half of your body weight with one hand in order to unhook the connector. You are very securely hooked( I have attached a picture of the 2 different conectors which there are 2 of each connecting you)to the tandem rig and your friend is just messing with you

Kirk
He's dead Jim

[Andy9o8 0]

Trafficdiver

That's not something you have to worry about with modern tandem chutes.

What you really need to worry about the the tandem instructors gay lover thinking you two are having an affair and shooting both of you in the landing area.

"Back up!"

"Shoot!"

[JohnMitchell 14]

Brz

Has anything like this ever happened?

No. You coworker knows even less than you do about skydiving. There's lots of misinformation out there. Learn to ignore it.

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Also (sorry for the long post) why doesn't the student for lack of a better word get a helmet or a back up shoot?

You don't get a hard helmet because you could hit us in the face with it.

You don't get a personal parachute because you're hooked to us and could foul things up with it. We're wearing 2 parachutes, both a main and a reserve (back up). We'll take action to save BOTH of our lives if necessary.

It takes training to know when to open the parachute. Opening it at the wrong time can cause problems.

[Di0 1]

Oh the good old "student cutaway" myth.
There is no such a thing. EVER.

Yes, true, bad student body position can cause some nasty spins, but the Tandem Instructors are trained to correct them or take other actions to safely bring both of you down.

As to why you can't have a backup parachute, because then it wouldn't be a tandem. The whole point of tandem jumps is trusting a person with hundreds if not thousands of jumps to operate the dual parachute system. Do AFF and you'll get your own parachute, actually you'll get two. ;)

As for your worries, statistically speaking, tandem jumping is the safest way to skydive, I remember statistics that suggest how the death rate is half of other "sport" skydiving (from the USPA website), so you're pretty good from that point of view. I guess it's safer because:
a) there is a very experienced instructor tightly strapped to you and in charge of emergency procedures and other actions
b) the presence of a very inexperienced student and having the huge responsibility of his/her life, will make the forementioned very experienced instructor not willing to do any sort of "stupid shit" that people try with "normal" skydiving.
Just freefall, deploy, fly your canopy, land safely.

I'm standing on the edge
With a vision in my head
My body screams release me
My dreams they must be fed... You're in flight.

[AnalMike 0]

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They only get a backup shoot if they bring their own weapon & ammo and have a CCW permit.

Which, of course, is what I do when I skydive around you Monkey!

[inline skydive.jpg]

Anal Mike

HEE HAW!!!
http://www.droguedonkey.com

[DougH 270]

Di0

Oh the good old "student cutaway" myth.
There is no such a thing. EVER.

Cutaway, no. Ballistic student release system, yes.

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

[Turboprop 0]

Brz, if you like it that much to come back for seconds: consider doing AFF?

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[BlueSkies415 0]

You guys are great...lucky I stumbled across this thread. Laughed so hard I almost spit out my soda on my office desk!

[Andy9o8 0]

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Has anything like this ever happened?

Not deliberately.