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Posts posted by mark

  1. Partial malfunction:  Hold the container flaps together with left hand, pull ripcord with right hand.  Throw ripcord away.  Peel back flaps.  Take canopy and big wad of lines, throw down and in the direction of spin.  For a really slow malfunction, might have to shake the reserve a couple time before it's interested in opening.  I've done this.

    Total malfunction:  Airborne tuck/fetal position. Pull ripcord. Assist canopy into wind if necessary.  I've never done this.

    • Like 2

  6. 8 hours ago, cosmicgypsy said:

    However on page 4-14 [of the 2015 Parachute Rigger Handbook} there is the topic of reserve bag extraction force, which incidentally is 18lbs. 

    This is a number from Jump Shack/Racer, and is merely asserted without providing without a source or reference.  Although the 2015 PRH implies that the same number applies other rigs, there is no way to to know.  There is no TSO requirement.

  7. 3 minutes ago, riggerrob said:

    FAA and PIA policy is for the old packing data card to go with the reserve canopy.

    All the other parts go with the harness/container.

    Conscientious sellers will ship a photo-copy of the card with the container.

    They might also send a photo-copy of the reserve packing data card with the AAD. Mind you, many AAD manufacturers now send separate cards specifically to record AAD maintenance: factory inspections, cutter replacements, Service Bulletins, etc.

    I disagree with Mark because I believe that all Service Bulletins, modifications, harness alterations, etc. should be written on the reserve packing data card. It is a professional courtesy to the next rigger.

    There is no FAA or PIA policy for the old packing data card to go with the reserve canopy.  There is just a reference (I think) in Poynter's Parachute Manual about sewing old cards to new ones.

    I disagree with RiggerRob, because (a) it doesn't matter for the inspection what is written on the data card, and (b) writing extra stuff on the data card creates additional liability for the rigger who records it.  But Rob is Canadian and I'm American, so we might have different perspectives, and there might be different legal issues and requirements. 

  8. 2 hours ago, reactor said:

    so is it mandatory or common practice to have packing data card goes with reserve?

    do i violate any regulation if i sell a reserve without packing card? 

    because there are already box on canopy label that can show number of repack and use. 

    For the FAA: 

    It is not mandatory, just common practice to have the packing data card go with the reserve.

    No, you do not violate any US regulation by selling a reserve without a packing card.

    Not all reserves have a place on the canopy label to show repacks and uses.  

     

  9. 19 minutes ago, reactor said:

    FAA require rigger to write down date/place/work performed on packing data card. simple maintenance might not need to be track, but what about major repair or alteration?

    14 CFR Part 65.131.c:  Five required items on an FAA data card:  date and place of packing, rigger certificate number and signature, notation of defects found during the inspection.  "Work performed" is not a required item.  "Major repair" or "alteration" is not a required item. "Locating previous riggers" is not a required item.  The inspection shows the equipment is either airworthy, or it is not.

  10. · Edited by mark

    10 hours ago, reactor said:

    if packing data card goes with reserve, then harness container owner will not be able to track what has been done on harness or container. 

    For US equipment, the packing data card is not a maintenance data card.  There is no requirement to use the packing data card to track what maintenance has been done on harness or container.

  12. 12 hours ago, al05r said:

    I guess the key words are "bartacked" and "dacron" though ... these lines are too thin for that. 

    Doesn't matter how thin the lines are.  The spreading force is concentrated at exactly the point where the cascade joins the continuous line, and it doesn't seem to matter much whether the lines are held together by carriers in the outer line or by the very last stitch in the bartack.

  13. 2 hours ago, riggerrob said:

    Tolerance - between the finger trap and first stitch is "minus zero or plus a half inch." Too close and the separate lines will tear stitches.   

    I'm not sure this correct.  Before there were fingertraps, ParaFlite just bartacked one piece of flat-braided dacron B/D cascade directly on top of a piece of flat-braided dacron A/B line.  MC4/MC5 (CT6 for Canadians like riggerrob!) were made like that too.  I don't recall any issues with the bartack stitches breaking.

  15. 12 minutes ago, JerryBaumchen said:

    Hi Mark,

    The Mirage is TSO'd as a C23(b) Low Speed Parachute; not to be used in aircraft over 150 MPH.

    Jerry Baumchen

    The TSO is silent with respect to deployment speed.  In most cases, skydiving aircraft are flown at less than 150 mph.

  16. 2 hours ago, pchapman said:

    Some rigs are certified to the old traditional 254 lbs (jumper plus gear), others as high as 300 lbs, but I'm not sure if there's anything beyond that. (Unless one uses adapted tandem or military gear.)  So it might be hard to be totally legal.

    Reserve canopies have a similar issue to the rig itself. E.g, the biggest PD reserves, whether regular or Optimum variety, max out at 290-300 lbs for certification.

    UPT, Mirage, and Jumpshack are all C23b manufacturers, i.e. no TSO weight or speed limits.  Sunpath Javelins are currently certified for 300 pounds and 170 knots.  The newest RI rigs are certified for 325 pounds and 150 knots.

    PD makes tandem reserves and military reserves certified for much higher weights than typical solo civilian applications.  These require more altitude for opening, so other altitudes (opening, malfunction decision, AAD activation) need to be adjusted upward.  Tandem reserves are readily available, and PD military reserves occasionally find their way to the civilian market.

    --Mark

     

  17. On 5/9/2019 at 7:01 PM, wolfriverjoe said:

    The rules for foreign jumpers jumping foreign gear in the US are pretty simple. If it's legal in your country, and you aren't a US resident, then it's legal to jump here when you visit.

    Almost, but not exactly.  The OP doesn't say if he is a US citizen.  US citizens jumping in the US must jump FAA-approved equipment packed by an FAA-rigger, regardless of where they are resident.

  19. 2 hours ago, gresende007 said:

    Hey guys, I've seen some posts about youngest skydiver to complete 1000 jumps but how about the youngest swooper? I am 17 and haven't competed yet but I plan on doing so and jump a JVX 69 loaded as 2.6 and swoop 810's for 110-120m on gates. What have you guys seen?

    That's so cool.  Can I be on your ash dive?

    • Like 3

  20. 10 hours ago, BaNaNaJoE said:

    So I've been dealing with the topic for a long time. I think you have to assess the danger on the basis of the fatalitys that you can not influence yourself. When I'm risking driving a car, I increase my chances of dying just as if I jumped risky. If you look at the skydiving only the accidents that happen through material failure and you can not influence the accident rate would have to be almost 0 while, for example, when driving is still exposed to a higher risk by the many other road users.

    On-line translators are having trouble translating this into English.  Can anyone help?

     

  21. 14 minutes ago, FLYJACK said:

    Does it make sense that a rigger would modify a ripcord for somebody else's chute? wouldn't that be dangerous?

     

     

    Rigger-Examiner here.  It's not dangerous for the person who asked for the ripcord to be moved.  We do it all the time for people who have physical limitations, and we do it sometimes for people who just have different preferences.

  22. 5 hours ago, wolfriverjoe said:

    Also, the fact that (presuming the pic posted of the Packing Data Card is correct) the Pioneer rig was out of date by a couple months. May 21 to Nov 24 is a lot more than 120 days (it was 120 in 1971, right?).

    At the time, it was 120 days for "chair-type" parachutes, 60 days for all other types including the Pioneer back.  60 days seems like it would be quite inconvenient for sport jumpers, except that sport jumpers were using chest types that (a) didn't take long to inspect and pack, and (b) could be shared by several jumpers as long as they weren't on the same load.

    • Like 1

  25. Here's what the manual says:

    Quote

     

    The Airforce Ram Air Reserve Parachute Canopy has been tested to the requirements of the Civil Aviation Authority, Civil Air Order 103.18 Equipment Standards – Emergency Parachutes.

    To demonstrate compliance with CAO 103.18, the United States Federal Aviation Administration, Technical Standard Order T.S.O – C23 (b) was used as the specification.

    Parachutes Australia has the authority to identify the Airforce Ram Air Reserve Parachute Canopy with Civil Aviation Authority CAO 103.18 markings. The Airforce reserve meets the requirements for a Low Speed Category Parachute and is limited to use in aeroplanes up to 150 miles per hour.

     

    TSO-C23b was superseded by C23c in 1984.  When was the Airforce Reserve tested and certified?

    --Mark