ripcord4

I'm not certain that canopy is a heavy-drop cargo chute. The load underneath could be just a weight to keep the canopy opening reliably. It looks like a T10 due to the parabolic construction but it is difficult to say from the photo as there is nothing to judge to diameter by. Strange system whatever it is!

"It is no coincidence that in no known language does the phrase 'As pretty as an Airport' appear." Douglas Adams Anyone that says that has never been 18 minutes into a 20 minute fuel light when he breaks out of IFR conditions and sees the rabbit running 2 miles ahead of the aircraft!

Correct...it will only read the pressure altitude in the cabin, generally 7 to 8 thousand feet. No joy for AGL.

Are you thinking of the A1 "spider"-type pilot chute that has been in military reserves since Christ was a Corporal? That's been used since WW II.

It has the general lines of the IL-76 but it isn't. I'll go with a computer-generated illusion (not Ilyushin). Look at the photo - can you imagine opening those clam-shell doors OUTWARD in flight like that? I don't think they'd stay attached very long! IL-76 doors are much smaller than that and only open until straight downward.

The US military routinely de-militarizes parachute equipment before releasing it to the civilian market. I have seen brand-new, never jumped canopies that had been surplused due to age with lines cut. I think it has do with liability more than anything.

It beats the hell out of staying in a burning, collapsing building! A small chance is better than no chance.

Good thing he never saw my first exit!

Ken, I have a copy of the relevent MWO and I would do it myself if I had a decent zig-zag machine. Fabricating the "net" is simple - it is the attaching to the canopy that is the pain.

Thanks, all. I did not think there was any restriction, legal or otherwise, about jumping this canopy. I am aware of the potential problem of flow-through and I am prepared for it, although I don't believe it is a common mal. Does anyone have any data on occurences in the military s/l jumping of this happening? How often, etc? I have heard via the grape-vine one death resulted but have no idea of the total number of mals of this type with this canopy. And, by the way, I do intend to have the webbing installed when I find a rigger that will do it. Most want nothing to do with rounds!

I have a MC1-1C canopy that has not had the MWO for Modification of the Steering Orifice done to it. Can any of our military/FAA people here tell me if this canopy is considered airworthy or not because the MWO hasn't been completed?

The harness appears to be a standard US military B12 harness...it could be off of several different rigs. The MC3 utilized the standard B12 harness and container - which this obviously isn't. Sorry I can't help with the ID of your container.

Good catch, AirCav!

I have tried all sorts of altimeter mounts but still prefer the Velcro wrist mount.

The FS-1 had 6' long Derry slots five gores apart so I would assume it was steerable (at the least it was manueverable) and had a little forward speed. It was steered with guidelines attached to the skirt and connector links.

It is an FS-1 with a 30' extended skirt main, usually packed in a T7 type container. Canopy was used by the US Forest Service, circa 1942.

A few POD photos at http://www.dropzone.com/cgi-bin/forum/gforum.cgi?do=post_attachment;postatt_id=47039 Use this URL thru _id=47042 I have some instructions around here someplace - I'll start digging.

Sleeves were not routinely attached to the canopies until the very late '50's. Until then they would just fly off at opening. The US team coaches of that era got tired of retrieving them and just started tying them to the apex.

That's like my next door neighbor when he asked why I always carry a .45. I told him "Because nobody makes a .46"!

Of course "back in the day" men were men. And sheep were afraid!

Isn't "entry Level" elliptical an oxymoron?

Jerry, Zig and all, Re: the "Chest Rating"....I have one and use it regularly. I belong to several WW II reenactment groups that jump using all military gear (SET-10"s, MC-1's, etc) and of course, the T10 chest reserve. The chest reserves need packing quarterly the same as square reserves so several riggers are kept busy using their "obsolete" rating. I also jump some of the "old" gear, too, if I didn't have my rating, who would pack my Tri-Conical and other 26' Lo-Po's? Let's not be in too much of a hurry to eliminate the rating. I have had a few riggers give me a blank stare when I asked if they would pack a round for me. Good thing I have my Obsolete, Useless ratings, huh?

Wow, there's a name from the past - George E. Bosworth - C23! I made many a jump with George at the old Amherst Sport Parachute Club in the mid-to-late 60's. He was quite a character but I lost track of George after ASPC closed and merged with Frontier Skydivers in Akron, NY. I may have a photo of him somewhere which I'll scan and post if I can find it!

I say again: the FAA sets NO limits on life span of canopies - main, reserve, what have you. Some manufacturers do but that is not rule of law. I can not and would not say a canopy is airworthy for myself but not someone else....airworthy is airworthy.

How do you figure a round reserve of 25+ years is "legally" out of date by age? To my knowledge the FAA does not set age limits on gear. Age has no bearing on gear that has been stored and maintained properly. I have a 40 year old Tri-Conical I jump with my 40 year old PC....it will pass any strength and porosity test you can give it....and it has.