obelixtim

RIP Frank, ex Manawatu Skydiving club. Judge at several nationals in the 70s. The big C strikes another one down.

The answer is.....Yes. But, as usual, there is always someone who knows better than the majority of experienced jumpers.

RIP Richard Kinloch, who was a good buddy back in the 70s at Manawatu Skydiving Club before he moved to Australia and jumped at Elderslie DZ. Ex RNZAF. We had some crazy good times back in those days. Fly free old mate. ETA: Richard posted on DZ.com as Marisan. Hadn't been on here for a while as he was battling the effects of a stroke a couple of years ago.

You're kidding right? "inform not enforce" translates to "I can do whatever I want because I wont get in trouble for it anyway". Imagine if the police only 'informed' citizens about the laws they broke and not actually enforced any of them. The FAA needs to step in the other direction and start handing out larger fines, revoking pilot licenses, and grounding aircraft permanently. What do you think would motivate a DZO more to do maintenance, threat that the FAA will come over to them and 'inform' them about the FARs they broke, or threat that the FAA will fine them six figures and ground their entire fleet? Are you really having this much trouble, or maybe I should say lack of trust, at your DZ? Was it an incident or something else that made you feel like you aren't safe when you skydive where you do? Have you talked to anyone else at your DZ to see if there isn't a way to address it locally? I dont have any major concerns at my DZ. However, I have jumped at places which are sketch city and even more mainstream DZs still usually do at least one thing unsafe. I am not going to name names because it simply doesent matter at this point. But I once stood by a girl at a very prominent DZ, one which I am very confident you've heard of, and overheard her instructor give her a WS course. It was her first time flying a WS, she only had 200 jumps and had never jumped a WS. Her instructor gave her maybe 10 minutes of ground instruction, 5 of which was spent getting her into the suit, and then she was on the same load as me. So basically five minutes of instruction and that was her entire first flight course for her first jump... And she had the absolute bare minimal jumps required for a WS jump. You can decide whether you think that is unsafe or not, but I would say it's a pattern of negligence and I see stuff like that at many DZs all over the place. If it's not shitty instruction at one DZ, it's lack of checking rigs when a new jumper comes to visit at another, or maybe a complete disregard to exit order at some other DZ, or maybe failure to ground students when the winds are honking at 20 - 25 knots... Those are all examples I've seen, and I have plenty more. So when I see stuff like that, stuff in which I KNOW that any experienced jumper knows is wrong, I dont have much of a mentality for 'educate, not punish'. Education is for people that made an understandable mistake. Punishments are for those who do know better and chose to break the rules anyway because they dont give a shit. I am not saying all DZs break the rules. Some are fantastic, but not all are. I thought this was about FAA and airplane maintenance. You've sidestepped the discussion nicely.

You're kidding right? "inform not enforce" translates to "I can do whatever I want because I wont get in trouble for it anyway". Imagine if the police only 'informed' citizens about the laws they broke and not actually enforced any of them. The FAA needs to step in the other direction and start handing out larger fines, revoking pilot licenses, and grounding aircraft permanently. What do you think would motivate a DZO more to do maintenance, threat that the FAA will come over to them and 'inform' them about the FARs they broke, or threat that the FAA will fine them six figures and ground their entire fleet? I don't think you really understand the meaning of "inform" rather than "enforce", as it pertains to how the FAA operates. There are plenty of sanctions for those who wilfully ignore the rules who then have incidents and accidents. Its advising operators how to comply, especially when new operational procedures are introduced, rather than waving a big stick at a pile of rubble AFTER an accident has occurred.

Not what I'm saying at all. I'm saying: "enjoy yourself, but don't fuck up doing so. Especially on my DZ. If you make me discipline you, I will. And you sure as hell won't like it". That has been very effective in keeping the dickheads in line, and uninjured. Horse shit! Who do you hang out with? In 44 years on DZs around the world, I've met a hell of a lot of skydivers. Very few have ego problems. Of course there are some blowhards, but most are down to earth nice people who are good to be around. Blowhards and ego trippers typically get sorted out pretty damn quick. Nah, too touchy feely for me. I don't like to waste time with idiots. And I have zero sympathy for idiots who screw up. Best way is to inform them straight up, seriously, that they need an attitude change, and if that's too difficult, find another DZ. It works.

(This is not aimed at you MB465) Anyone who jumps just to look cool has an ego problem. Just jumping out of plane impresses non jumpers. Other jumpers don't really give a shit. Just be comfortable with yourself and enjoy what you have achieved. Why the need to impress others? It strikes me as a lack of self assurance.

As has been said, you have to want to skydive for your own reasons. It doesn't work trying to please others. Wifey is getting her own buzz, so she doesn't really need you to jump for her sake. You've given it a good shot, be proud of that. You have nothing to prove, and no one at the DZ will think any less of you if you decide to move on. Lots of people do. Its pointless putting yourself through the wringer if you are getting nothing positive from it. The suggestion to take up paragliding or hang gliding, gliding or even getting a pilots licence, is a good one if you enjoy the flight phase. Do something YOU want to. Don't be pressured by what others may say or feel about the sport. Make your own decisions and stick to them. I think you've made the right decision. Skydiving is meant to be fun, not torture. Well done on the weight loss. There are plenty of people out there who fall like a cannon ball, me included. Good luck.

In the below video the jumpers are landing with huge inflatables that look like the ones that will upright people. How often do people drown using the method in the video? How often do people get tangled in gear? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vzbr-Cqgdfc Are you seriously suggesting we should dump first time students in the water, or just pursuing a topic of discussion for academic reasons? He's not seriously suggesting anything. Its just he knows nothing about skydiving. Time wasting.

What if the tandem had a separate video flyer? Doesn't matter. I only mentioned tandem altitude b/c above that you really start to land late, and it does make sense to let the pilot and wingsuiters know there will be a canopy in airspace it normally wouldn't be in. But as well all know, it is horizontal separation that matters between groups, not vertical. If I end my skydive early, whether intentional or not, none of the other freefall groups should be affected. Even wingsuiters should be on a flight path well off the standard flight line. I wouldn't make a habit of assuming anything. Its a bad habit, which sooner or later, will bite you on the arse. What is the problem with informing others of your intentions anyway? More information is always a better option than less.

I thought they had figured that case out?

Gives you something to chew on when you are stuck up a tree waiting for rescue. Could be dangerous if you choke on one.

Not Marty Feldman. Monty Python sketch. Four Yorkshiremen. You'll find it on You Tube.

I'd forgotten about frap wraps, but the R2s and R3s were the bees knees. Couldn't think of a better system than that, then Booth came up with the 3 ring circus and that just killed the others stone dead. And time has proven the genius of his design.

We seem to be going round in circles here. A licence is a Certificate of Proficiency and can not be revoked. The Articles of Association state, but as I very much doubt he is a current member Council would be unable to do anything until he reapplied for membership (at which time he would have served his time, albeit remaining on licence for the rest of his life). There have been bans in the past, in relation to fixed-object jumping fatalities but they turned out not to be lifetime (I'm confused as to whether that was the intention or not), but there were threats of lifetime bans if BPA Members were found to be BASE jumping afterwards. The BPA Operations Manual later changed to state that Fixed Object jumping did not come within the provisions of the Operations Manual in order to distance itself. So here's an interesting question; has it actually been prejudicial to the Association? Would people think less of the sport and the association because of the actions of a criminal? Or do they think it is the act of a psychopath who could have used a number of methods to carry out his crime? If he'd tampered with the brakes of the car would it be prejudicial to the manufacturer of the car? I suspect it is all moot as I too doubt he would ever visit a dropzone ever again. I think it would reinforce the perception amongst the great unwashed that skydiving is an incredibly dangerous activity, and so it could be argued to have damaged the sport. Although it would be unlikely to change the minds of those so prejudiced anyway. But it is bad PR, especially for those making a living from skydiving. I've spent a lot of time over the years educating the public about skydiving, so anything that reinforces an opposite view is a negative, in my mind anyway.