Thijs

Body has been found now. No further details at this time.

Did one wingsuit jump two years back from 19 000 ft Have working oxygen in the plane for everyone. Oxygen in freefall shouldn't be necessary from 19.700 ft

I know two people who had issues locating their handles. One had an RSL and was eventually able to pull the cutaway handle and have a reserve opening because of the RSL. Another one could find his cutaway handle, but reserve handle was inside the suit. No RSL. Rode a spinning main into the ground. Luckily landed on the rooftop of a supermarket and only had a broken ankle.

A person who already has the flying skills, will be able to focus better on those tasks, than someone who has no previous experience. This weekend at my DZ there was a first flight student who was spinning for the most part of the jump. If you can't get the flying right, then navigation and deployment will probably also not be a great success either. Of course regardless of how much tunnel experience someone has, they should always get the proper skydive training before starting wingsuit skydiving, and gradually built up their skills.

Yes, definitely, even when other people consider me to be already an experienced wingsuit flyer. There is a bunch of stuff to learn and try in the tunnel, especially regarding perfecting precision flying. I was always told the tunnel can be a confronting experience for experienced people

Also keep in mind that sometimes written examinations are required for the licenses, and I'm not sure if those can be taken in English (unless you of course learn Dutch

RSL/MARD would have made him loose less altitude after the cutaway and give him more time to deal with potential problems. Probably would have also given him less line twists or even none at all. While it is a 'personal choice' the statistics on RSL/MARD use are pretty clear. I prefer a few line twists at 1000 ft over a partially inflated reserve at 0ft. And obviously, when upsizing your main, it is probably not a bad idea to upsize your reserve as well. Funny how people say they need a big low bulk canopy as a main for wingsuiting, but totally forget about their reserve...

So a V4 is an acro suit?

So far 1 cutaway in 4200 wingsuit jumps, watch me pack in 3 minutes And that wasn't even your packjob ;-)

Doesn't an insurance contract have to specify what is insured and for what amount of money? I'm not sure about the US, but I really doubt that argument will hold up for a European court, since one could argue if the company has any intention of ever paying out a claim.

Here are my two cents. It's not because a canopy has a good consistent opening outside of wingsuiting, that the canopy is a good choice as a wingsuit canopy. When everything goes right, then sure, jumping with a Valkyrie/Katana/Whatever will not be an issues. It's just when things go (slightly) wrong, due to whatever reasons (unstable pull, pilot chute hesitation, bad luck), that things will escalate more rapidly. If I have a linetwist with riser offset on my Spectre 150, it is usually not a big deal, but the same riser offset and linetwist on a small high performance canopy will more quickly result in a cutaway. Also, how comfortable are you landing out with that small canopy? How far will it take you back from a long spot? Don't choose a canopy for when everything goes right, but for when it goes wrong. I know quite a few load organizers (including myself) who will not let you in on group jumps if you are jumping a too small canopy. You are not only putting yourself more at risk, but also the other people on the group.

That might technically be correct, but it not the reason why belly goes out first. Your reasoning doesn't work when a plane is dropping with a tail wind. The longer an object stays in freefall, the more it will drift according to the winds at that altitude. If you would drop a freeflyer and a belly flyer from a helicopter which is flying without moving forward (so there is no hill), they would still open at different locations, simply due to the different amounts of time they are exposed to relative wind.

Can someone pass me the popcorn please?

Yes. Why that? Because it shows Gary is a smart man that has a backup option?

Just adopt the regulations from the French. They have already done the work for you