markbaur

Yup. It's always up to the rigger, and you can always say no. Mark

Before I sign on for premium membership, I'd like to change my user ID to one that has been dormant (no log-on) for over three years. I tried e-mailing the holder of the user ID, with the thought that with his or her permission and password I could simply adopt the account. No response. Am I out of luck, or is there another way? Mark

Are you serious? If you wanted to, you could skydive at Skydive Chicago, Skydive San Francisco, and Skydive Dallas. Perhaps you should take the twenty-minute drive to Skydive Flagstaff and see if they'll let you jump there. Mark

I don't read FAR 105.49 that way. The specific provision is in (a)(4): "All foreign non-approved parachutes deployed by a foreign parachutist ... shall be packed as follows-- (i) The main parachute ... (ii) The reserve parachute must be packed in accordance with the foreign parachutist's civil aviation authority requirements, by a certificated parachute rigger, or any other person acceptable to the Administrator." The term "certificated parachute rigger" is not defined, but as used elsewhere in Part 105, it means "FAA-certificated parachute rigger." I'll be happy to pack that rig, provided I have understandable packing instructions and have some way of verifying that it's an acceptable rig in the foreign country. I'll even put my seal on it, unless sealing the rig is unacceptable to the foreign civil aviation authority. Mark

Even though you won't find skydiving-approved rubber bands at an office supply store, nothing keeps you from using whatever you bands want for packing practice at home. When you get to the dz, open your pack and replace the rubber bands with ones more commonly used in skydiving. When you pack for a jump, you must absolutely use good rubber bands (or Tube Stoes™ or similar) for the bag locking stows. Mark

A Cessna 152 Aerobat has the same wing as a Cessna 152. A Citabria has a conventional airfoil (more-or-less flat on the bottom, curved on top), and a Decathlon has a "semi-symmetrical" airfoil. I flown inverted in gliders, too: I used to instruct in an ASK-21 and SZD50-3. (The inverted glide ratio isn't very good, though.) As long as the angle of attack is sufficient, the airfoil can be quite inefficient and still generate lift. Come to think of it, even a stalled wing produces some lift: in a spin, both wings are stalled, but one is stalled more than the other. Actually, airplanes will fly backwards, just not very well. The problem isn't Bernoulli's principle (or Bernouli)(or principal), it's that the positions of the control surface hinges make it difficult for a pilot to overcome the leverage advantage of the backward-moving air. I'll be contacting local flight schools to see what can be done about the sad state of aerodynamic understanding in the world today. Mark

IIRC, Hollister's landing area is a 20-minute van ride from the airport, and at a higher elevation. It is not clear from Kim's post if the +450 was the adjustment for the dz (though I don't remember the difference being that great), or if they adjusted for dz and added another 450 feet. I speculate they adjusted for only for the higher dz, and the Vigil fired high for the same reason a Cypres would in the same situation: misinterpreting higher air pressure (from rotation to feet-first) and thinking it was at a lower altitude. Mark

Because moving the mass closer to the CG allows faster rolls. Nothing to do with the airfoil. And certainly not because one wing is upside down. There's lots of drag association with struts and wires, though, so here's a link with a picture of an Extra 300: http://www.airventure.org/2004/performers/patty_wagstaff.html. A monoplane. The airplane of choice for world-class aerobatics competition. Mark Gold Seal CFI-ASMEL,IA,H,G

Because Type 7 or Type 8 (in some parts, doubled Type 8) is strong enough, and because friction adapter tests show Type 13 is not significantly better than Type 7 in resisting slippage. Mark

Type 7 is rated at 5500 pounds and has been in successful use in the sport market for years. Choosing Type 13 because it is rated at 6500 pounds sounds like marketing, not engineering. I just packed a competing rig, on which all the reserve risers were Type 7. Why does Jump Shack use weaker Type 8 for rear reserve risers in this critical application? Mark

Racers use Type 8 for rear reserve risers, chest strap, diagonals, and laterals. Where Racers use Type 13 instead of Type 7 or doubled Type 8, they do so for better compatibility with leg strap friction adapters, not for strength. Mark

Sorry, the previous poster was correct. From Cypres News, August 2004 (http://www.cypres-usa.com/cypres06.pdf): "The lifetime for CYPRES is 12 years plus 3 months from original date of manufacture." Mark

JP - What regulation prevents an FAA-certificated rigger from working on non-TSO'd equipment? Mark

As long as you don't mind betting the pilot's ticket, too. FAR 105.43(c): "If installed, the automatic activation device must be maintained in accordance with manufacturer instructions." Sort of like jumping with an out-of-date reserve. Mark

There are two 206 variants. The more common U206 has a large door at the rear of the cabin, and the P206 has a 182-style door at the front of the cabin. Both carry 5 jumpers comfortably; 6 is crowded and can exceed the max gross weight. The P206s I've flown and jumped have been equipped with in-flight doors (hinged at the top) the same as 182s. I have seen a very nice U206 equipped with a roll-up door at Skydive Monterey in California, but most of the rest have been flown without doors -- a colder, slower climb. Launching a 4-way from the step of a P206 is fairly easy, and it's possible for a cameraman to float at the rear of the door at the same time. The U206 has CG problems with 4-way launches, and I would not allow a rear-float cameraman to launch with a 4-way. We take about 25 or 30 minutes per load to 10,000. A turbo might be faster, but adds greatly to operating expense. Mark