Kurbe105

The 206 had 4 jumpers and the pilot. The door remained closed and the load landed safely from 400'. That was in Lake Wales Dec 2005. The TO had 7 jumpers and a pilot with 20+ years of flying jumpers. The crash was in July 2006 in Sullivan, MO. Even with the pilot's skill level I don't know that I would have felt safer in the the airplane then trying to drag myself out with the plane fucked as bad as it was. Also it only had dash 20 engines and was definitely not in a climbing attitude. I hate the powerless feeling I get when I imagine myself in my friends' situation.

It was a short field take off. Everyone on board was buckled in and all had hard helmets except the tandem students. Every seat belt being used failed 100%. Maybe your only chance would have been to strap in with 3 or 4 belts?

My bad on the Cessna details. In the case of a single engine the feathering isn't really even a factor I guess. I was on the load right before that and think I remember the pilot saying that was his 5th emergency landing! In the case of this TO situation the right engine caught fire then seized and the auto feather failed resulting in a hard yaw to the right just between V1 and V2. The aircraft flew over a heavily wooded area and never got above 120' before impact. It was a hot summer day so the door would have stayed open until 1000' and the load was extremely light with 2 tandems each with video and one solo AFF graduate. It was my home drop zone and I often think to myself "What would I have done if I was doing a hop-n-pop on that load?"

This was an actual situation in 2005 and 6 of the eight on board died. One was paralyzed resulting in suicide a year later. The only survivor was due to her tandem instructor using his body to shield the student. His name was Robert Cook and he's a true hero! Does it change your procedure now that you know had you done nothing you would be dead?

No one ever really knows what exactly they'll do unless you get put in that situation. Engine out I'm sure most everyone would stay with the plane, engine on fire... that's another story. I've seen BASE freefalls from 180' and static lines from as low as 78'. I like the idea of trying to let the inflated canopy pull you out better than trying to static line your reserve by tying the pilot chute off to a seat belt. At least you'd have a semi inflated wing over your head instead of bottom skin inflation with the slider up. Better hope you have some trees under you and be ready to thump assuming you clear the tail. All that being said it's a gamble either way. I remember an engine out in a Cessna 205 at 400' when training with Jay M in Lake Wales. The pilot landed safely in a construction lot and all 5 on board were safe. That was a single engine with a prop that was able to be feathered. If I realized the pilot couldn't feather the prop on the engine that was burning... at some point you have to make the decision if your going to fight to stay alive or do nothing and rely on hope. I have an unfair advantage because I know why you asked the question and how it turned out.

The term 'Spinletto' comes from the very flat flight characteristics and twitchiness of the canopy. The technology for the time was top notch but the world of canopy piloting and swooping has proven the effectiveness of more aggressive trim angles when it comes to generating lift with high speed landings. They turn on a dime but are quiet a bit more dangerous when it comes to swooping because of the shorter recovery arc and flatter trim angle. This creates a tendency to initiate the turn lower as to not finish the rotation high vs being able to let the canopy dive longer from a higher altitude because of a much larger and slower recovery arc.

I remember this parachute!!! I think the best bet in your situation is the Crossfire-2 135. Don't waste your time with anything 7 cell or non-elliptical, you'll be bored and regret it very quickly! I have a feeling you sink out of the sky with your Spinletto 120 for a few different reasons. If you're at a higher wingloading now then previously, small details which decrease wing efficiency will be much more noticeable. Are you collapsing and stowing the slider securely and loosening your chest strap as wide as you can? This allows the wing to flatten out and generate lift more efficiently. It also makes the canopy more responsive to harness inputs due to the direct angle from your endcells to your hip rings. Also if the fabric is all 'cheese clothed out' the wing will loose lift due to lack of rigidity especially at the end of your flare. With a wing loading around 1.5 a 135sqft CF2 should be exactly what you're looking for. The recovery arc of the Katana is actually better for swooping, but the resale market is thin so I would say bad investment. People who jump these are taking almost all the risks associated with x-braces but get very little of the reward. You're much better off with a Velo for all around sport or a JVX for amateur competition. If you do start to wish the recovery arc was longer on the CF2 and you want more lift and speed out of your acceleration cycles start adding more weight. As a general rule the longer the recovery arc the better because you aren't trying to time a tight corner. Another trick to stretch out the recovery arc is to fold your risers lengthwise and stitch the trailing edge. This cuts down on parasitic drag and slows down the pendulum effect which lengthens the recovery arc. Remember any input before you fully recover from the dive is bad because you are prematurely starting your deceleration cycle which kills your swoop. Check out Nick and how he doesn't give any input except minor harness corrections until he hits the gate and the canopy has stopped accelerating on its own. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ctDTGS-rek4 There's a reason he's the world record holder for distance!

Landing downwind is an art that is often looked upon as stupid and dangerous by most in the sport much the same as skydiving is looked upon as stupid and dangerous by much of society. With the rising popularity of canopy piloting we are constantly pushing our limits and changing what is regarded as the norm. Landing downwind is a beautiful thing once a few basic survival skills are learned. First off, never stop flying your canopy even once your feet or bum have touched the ground. Second, the glory points come from the speed, not standing up the landing, so keep your feet up and slide in the landing(especially if you've got 20+ lbs of lead on to up your wingloading). Think of those grass stains as braggin' rights because you're still walking and able to get on the next load!!!

I am going to post to this thread again when I have more time and include contact info. for those who care enough to share their thoughts with Talent's cabinet or whatever you would call them. I would call them pricks but that is just me. I would urge everyone to write a letter regarding their insensitive, inappropriate comments. Whether they knew or not, they should not have had any problem publicly apoligizing for their ignorance which they refused to do even after being proved wrong. It was a slap in the face to Melissa's family and friends. As far as Frenchy's remark about how we should stop "cratering ourselves" ourselves into the ground, I find that particularly offensive in light of this thread which was started as a result of a person's death who had no control whatsoever over the fact that she was"cratered into the ground" as you so insensitively put it. Edited to add that this post was made by NoShitThereIWas accidentally on Kurbe105's account. So should you have any issues with this post you can PM NoShitThereIWas. Blue skies.

I am a Steven King buff! Growing up my favorites were Firestarter and Carrie. As a teenager, Stand By Me was one of my favorites and as an adult Shawshank takes the cake!