obelixtim

No part of it had any service life. Jerry Baumchen Towards the end, the cartridges had a shelf life of two years. I regret being old enough to remember this. -Mark Most of the cartridges wouldn't survive more than 2 years in the field anyway, they were rather brittle and easily damaged, even with a sleeve to protect them. One of them did a job for me on my first freefall....after a horse shoe that took me 2500 feet to get rid of....so you won't find me slagging off the Sentinel 2000!!! My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

ACME AAD Repairs....... My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

Again, this could be construed in a number of ways. Up to the user or regulations of the country. Well the regulations state " "(c) If installed, the automatic activation device must be maintained in accordance with manufacturer instructions for that automatic activation device." Well the "maintenance" is performed at 4,8 years. Is retirement or end of life considered maintenance and that the manufacturer has stated in communication that after 12 years it is up to the user OR .... leaves a bit of ambiguity in there. Why not simply state that the device should not be used after the service life - 12.5 or 15.5 years. That way it is very clear - in fact from a software point of view they could disable the device at end of service life - ie. unit would not turn on. They are able to determine when unit requires service. And for the record you bring me an old AAD past its service life - I'm not packing it. Neither would I. But "service life" only came into vogue with the later generation AADs. Previously,(with mechanical units) as long as units were tested and/or upgraded, they had no "service life". I don't even think the original pyrotechnic Snyder Sentinels had a service life. Like the twin beech, the originals were so well made, the company weren't selling new ones, so they came up with a manufactured spar "problem" that ended with a good aircraft grounded. Airtec and the like are in business to sell AADs. It makes complete business sense from their POV to give them a shelf life. Deterioration of components may be a reasonable excuse to retire them, but underneath it all there will also be a commercial component to their decision making. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

You wouldn't be skydiving today if it weren't for the SL system. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

That's more of an indictment on his instructors than him. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

Thoughts? Minds? You give them too much credit, methinks. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

I hope a suitably worded thank you note was sent to aforementioned manager and ATC staff..... "Thanks for screwing our DZ you idiots" But that might have been their intention all along. The lesson is to fight all the way..... My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

I used to be of this thinking. Just turn it off & you're good to go. However, over time, the batteries can deteriorate and destroy/damage the canopy, etc that is in the reserve pack tray. Jerry Baumchen Hi Jerry....I was talking in a hypothetical way, as a one off when testing the meaning/wording of the "regulation". And of course the older mechanical AADs didn't have batteries and could be easily turned off. I bet I'd get some funny looks these days if I showed up with a KAP3 or FXC 12000 on a rig. Would they comply with the "rules" I wonder? My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

Yep, you don't have to turn it on, but if you do, you are breaking the rules. Nope. You are breaking the rules by having it "installed" whether it's turned on or not. Read the regulation. Not all DZs (or countries) mandate AADs, so if you are at a DZ that does not mandate AADs you don't need to have one. Having one that is turned off, effectively is the same as not having one at all. Is it not? And there is no "rule" that says an AAD must be fitted to a reserve. AADs fitted to main parachutes instead of reserves is not unknown.(But that is a separate issue) And AAD requirements are not always hard "rules", mostly they are recommendations. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

Yep, you don't have to turn it on, but if you do, you are breaking the rules. Reminds me of a mate back in the day, always used the eyeball instead of an altimeter, and was told he had to wear an alti. His priority was to spend his money on jumps, so did not want to buy one. He found a broken one in the rubbish, and attached it to his ankle where he couldn't see it anyway. His point was that he was compliant with the rules as they were written, if not their intent. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

Great mates you have, putting you in this position. WTF were they thinking bringing that shit in, and then leaving it there. Are they going to help you out, either by taking responsibility for the glasses case, or chipping in for your legal costs? I bet not! And how is the prosecution going to pin it on you when you most likely came in in an ambulance, and were confined to a bed with major injuries? Anyone with access to your room could have left it there. Shaky case I think. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

Its great to see these guys coming up with a concept, and developing it to make it a reality. Its thinkers and innovators like this who make the world what it is today. Not sure I can see it replacing human cameramen on large formation loads especially, could be dangerous having inanimate objects flying around, but who knows where this will go. Durability of the system will be a challenge. I've been surprised many times over the years, watching how skydiving technology has progressed, after many times thinking we'd taken new concepts as far as they could go. Kudos to this team. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

OK, I didn't word my post that well. Obviously if the headwind is way too high, you won't be going anywhere but backwards. But if the head wind is about the same as your canopy speed, you can make progress by crabbing. You can help by lifting your legs, bringing your arms in to make a smaller profile with your body, and lessen the effects of the wind. However, it makes sense to make a decision about your landing zone when you still have enough altitude to get to it. That might mean flying downwind to a clear area. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

Cheating the Reaper always feels good. And the beer tastes sweeter!. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

It sounds like you were facing directly into a headwind, and making no progress. You can make progress into the wind if you fly at 45 degrees to the headwind, alternating your heading so you don't get pushed too far sideways. A bit like how sailors tack sailboats into the wind. Called "crabbing" in the old days of roundies. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

This will be a CQS scrote renewing the attack. The editor needs to close this correspondence. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

The DZ should file a lawsuit to retrieve their losses. Malicious legal action against them. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

You'd be surprised at the number who answer 500, thus falling right into the cunningly laid trap. You can have some fun with these people. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

Proof.... I remember showing it after some public speaking gigs about skydiving I was asked to do many years ago. Watching the audience reactions as it played cracked me up...they thought it was real, confirming their preconceptions about me being totally crazy....the funny thing, being at the end, I made a pitch to train anyone...and always got a couple of takers. On the VR training thing, sounds like a great tool, which will be standard in 10 years time. Lots of different applications, not just student training. Skydiving wouldn't be where it is today, if we didn't evolve, innovate, experiment and introduce new ideas and techniques. This process will never stop. Embrace it. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

I wonder how many tandem videos are out there, set to "Free Falling" or "Learning to Fly". My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

Not by whoffos...... My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

Cost a fortune in wrecked AADs, altimeters and radios. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

Good move on the reserve pull. First rule of survival: Problem in freefall? Stop the freefall! Avoid tandem terminal. Drogue entanglement would likely set up a wicked spin. Not a good place to be, for both of you. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

I think this was the plan. One big misstake was made: the weather data was incorrect. During the day the winds were pretty strong, these values were used to calculate the exit point. But we jumped just before sunset, when the winds became almost zero That's why I said, plan your jump, jump your plan. If conditions change, new plan. Its not unusual for winds to die down in the evening, in fact they can often change 180 degrees, as the land cools, especially if there is a large body of water nearby.... Something your "planners" didn't take into account. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

They should have access to met data, which is usually updated at 4 hourly intervals. They pass local information to pilots. Get your pilot to ask the tower jocks where he can access updated local weather information. We do it on the phone.... My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....