chuckakers

It's with a very heavy heart that I write to say our dear friend and fellow skydiver Henry Butler has passed away. Henry was a longtime Houston jumper who spent many years as an FS competitor and judge. Henry was a Vietnam era U.S. Navy veteran who began jumping in 1996, calling Skydive Houston his home DZ for many years. Most recently he was an active jumper at Skydive Spaceland Houston, where he was always a welcome player in any slot. Solid and dependable described him well in the air and on the ground. He was also a damn good judge, participating in countless competitions and records throughout the years. Above all, Henry was a kind, polite gentleman with a heart of gold. Never an unkind word, and always a positive spirit. A friend to all who knew him. We have truly lost one of the good guys. Henry R. Butler, D-20747, passed away peacefully in his sleep early Tuesday morning at the age of 67. Details on a friends and skydivers remembrance are forthcoming. Please send condolences to his better half Debby Dodge at 6711 Lindayann Lane, Houston 77008 Blue skies, Henry. See you at the debrief.

Going on 35 years. Still got it.

Are you saying manufacturers are claiming proper activations based solely on cutter units sold?

A former coworker of mine used to trash pack pretty bad and got line overs fairly routinely on his Raider. He cleared them by climbing a riser - front most often - nearest the point of the line over until the line slipped off. Of course this was done with a loading of 1.3 +/- on a square F-111 canopy. Not sure I would try it on a heavily loaded HP canopy. With all that said, I have always been an advocate of just getting rid of anything that doesn't fly right, and doing it quickly. I have seen docile malfunctions turn into vicious, high G ones in the blink of an eye. I have also lost friends because the mals they had were so violent that they were rendered unable to properly perform EP's. If it looks bad and flies bad, it's bad. We will never know how many jumpers have died because they jacked around with a mal that went south in a big way. Don't add yourself to the list. And on that subject, this is timely.... https://parachutistonline.com/p/Article/dont-delay-cut-awaythe-link-between-spinning-malfunctions-and-difficult-cutaways

You are correct. Can you open your reserve and reclose it without breaking the seal? Derek V I was referring to this. http://www.dropzone.com/cgi-bin/forum/gforum.cgi?post=4906778#4906778 Chuck Akers D-10855 Houston, TX

On Racers, the seal must be broken to open the rig. Jump Shack instructions call for a fixed closing loop, tacked to the top of the pilot chute, under the decorative cap. I suppose it would be possible for a really motivated person to untack the pilot chute cap and then disassemble the closing loop to allow it to float, but a person with that sort of time and skill could find other, easier ways to do stupid rigger tricks. Interestingly, Airtec would prefer a floating loop on Racers, one that could slide over the top of the pilot chute instead of being tacked to it.. A previous poster noted that such a change would reduce the risk of having only one cutter fire. --Mark My bad. I looked back at the post I was originally replying to. The poster was referring to "2-pin continuous loop rigs like Softies and Nationals". My point stands. If a rig can be opened and closed without detection, I contend that the seal is just a tag identifying the rigger who closed it. Chuck Akers D-10855 Houston, TX

That's the part I'm referring to. If a rig - like a Racer, apparently - can be opened and re-closed without breaking the seal, it's not a seal. It's just an identifying tag. Chuck Akers D-10855 Houston, TX

Except on 2-pin continuous loop rigs like Softies and Nationals, which can be opened, aired, inspected, and repacked without breaking the seal. --Mark Which begs the question, what good is a it if the reserve can be tampered with and the seal remain intact? Chuck Akers D-10855 Houston, TX

Summer of 1985, because a co-worker wanted someone to go with him. Changed everything about me forever. Chuck Akers D-10855 Houston, TX

fixed Chuck Akers D-10855 Houston, TX

Oh, the irony. Chuck Akers D-10855 Houston, TX

Sorry you had a bad experience. I would never dream of not being responsive to a member - whether in my region or not. If you can't get the help you need, I suggest contacting the president of the board or the executive director. Often a call from one of them kickstarts action. You can also call me. I handle the gulf region but I'm happy to assist any member in any way at any time, 24/7. It's what I signed up for so it's what I am prepared to do. I encourage anyone who holds a seat on the board to do the same. My number is 832-630-1213. Add me to your contacts. Chuck Akers D-10855 Houston, TX

me - 1.6 my wife - 1.2 my son - 3.2 Chuck Akers D-10855 Houston, TX

Everything you ever wanted to know about disciplinary actions can be found in the USPA Governance Manual section 1-6, page 24. https://uspa.org/Portals/0/files/Man_GovMan.pdf Chuck Akers D-10855 Houston, TX

TSO'd gear is not required for foreign jumpers in the U.S as long as certain conditions are met. See FAR 105.49 below sec. 105.49 foreign paracHutists and equipment (a) No person may conduct a parachute operation, and no pilot in command of an aircraft may allow a parachute operation to be conducted from that aircraft with an unapproved foreign parachute system unless— (1) The parachute system is worn by a foreign parachutist who is the owner of that system. (2) The parachute system is of a single-harness dual parachute type. (3) The parachute system meets the civil aviation authority requirements of the foreign parachutist’s country. (4) All foreign non-approved parachutes deployed by a foreign parachutist during a parachute operation conducted under this section shall be packed as follows— (i) The main parachute must be packed by the foreign parachutist making the next parachute jump with that parachute, a certificated parachute rigger, or any other person acceptable to the Administrator. (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. Chuck Akers D-10855 Houston, TX