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Found 523 results

  1. Operators of a skydiving school at Kapowsin Field, a residential airport in rural Pierce County, recently received their second setback in eight months when an administrative law judge recommended against renewal of a liquor permit. Kapowsin Air Sports owners Geoff and Jessie Farrington had been ordered last August by a Pierce County Superior Court judge to scale back their thriving skydiving business at the airport, 10 miles south of Orting. The Farringtons have gone to the Washington State Court of Appeals to contest that land-use-permit decision. The more recent rebuff came in the form of a permit ruling released April 25. Administrative Law Judge Ernest Heller recommended the state Liquor Control Board deny a permit renewal requested by Kapowsin Air Sports. The board is expected to issue a final decision in a month or so. The Class 4 special permit is the type required at a private banquet. It doesn't allow alcohol sales but permits the school to serve alcohol for free. "It appears that consumption of beer following a day of skydiving is the expectation of many skydivers," Heller said in his ruling. "The beer consumption seems to have developed into an uncontrolled potluck party." Jessi Farrington disputed that description. She said a few drinks at the end of a dive day is a 50-year tradition among skydivers. "People who are making decisions are not experiencing any of what's going on here," she said. Arguments on the subject were heard last December and in March after Pierce County land-use officials objected to the renewal request. County officials said a liquor license is not allowable at the airport, which is zoned for rural residential use. The skydiving school has been controversial among airport residents for the past few years. Some residents, as well as Pierce County officials, think the 23-year-old school has outgrown what it set out to be. The Farringtons bought 110 acres in the rural area, built the airport and opened the school. Over the years, pilots and skydivers bought portions of the airport, which now features 27 residences. The skydiving school started in 1978 with 2,000 jumps a year and the level of activity has grown to 20,000 jumps. Farrington said Heller's ruling won't affect her school, but said, "it's going to affect the social aspect of it."
  2. admin

    Three Jump Plane-to-Plane

    Joe Jennings is back at it again! Only this time, the stunt is bigger and better than anything like it before. The group shot this stunt at Skydive Arizona, in Eloy, for a television show called "That's Incredible"-a remake of the 70's show that inspired many of our current skydivers and stunt people today-which should air in late spring. Teaming up with some of the best skydivers in the world-Omar Alhegelan, Greg Gasson, and Steve Curtis - Joe planned a stunt that started three skydivers in one airplane and ended with them in a completely different airplane. Photos: Brent Finley Joe Jennings flew the main camera with other angles shot by Brent Finley (who graciously let us use his pictures) and Blake. Joe enlisted the piloting skills of Larry Hill and his son, Sean, to fly the two birds. Larry flew the Otter that the jumpers started in while Sean flew the Porter, which was the final destination for the jumpers. Joe also hired Scott Christianson to rig the drogue chute for the plane with an assistant, Chuck Ross. Carl Nespoli was in charge of turning on all the P.O.V. cameras mounted to the Porter and also jumping from the Porter with the drogue d-bag to deploy the drogue. Joe's team started testing the stunt on a Tuesday, but was only able to make one jump due to the production company dealing with legal and insurance issues. On Wednesday, the production company that was originally in this backed out, so Joe hired the crew under his own production company. Thursday came and the team did one jump, which resulted in a broken drogue chute. Sean Hill recovered the Porter and landed. After that, 60 mph dust storms and the broken drogue chute brought an early end to the day. Friday came early and yielded blue skies and a wind warning. The team rushed to the DZ and had a go at it. The team went up in the plane, ready to jump. They made their first practice jump for the day. Omar caught up with the Porter, climbed in, and waved to camera flyers! During jump number one, the three jumpers-Omar, Greg, and Steve-caught up with the plane and climbed in by 8,000 ft. This whole stunt was achieved in only 40 seconds! In an e-mail, Joe said, "We could have done it with five guys, but three was all we needed for a great stunt, so our work was done." Soon after the stunt was finished, the original producers returned and finished up the job. The final product seemed as though they never left. Congratulations to Joe and his whole crew on this unbelievable stunt. I am sure that we will be seeing much more from Joe after this.
  3. Sung Chang-woo, a member of the Republic of Korea Army Special Forces (KASF), has the highest record for the number of skydiving parachute jumps in Korea making some 5,000. The record was achieved in the "25th Skydiving and Parachute Contest," organized by KASF, on Saturday. Sung jumped off from 10,000ft above the ground with his 12 year-old daughter on Children's Day and later said in an interview that he was happy to find the time to spend with his daughter, which he finds difficult to do sometimes. Sung first joined the KASF in 1979 and began skydiving in 1989. Sung even held his wedding ceremony in the sky, despite the strong objections from the bride's family. He also has a license in scuba-diving along with many other outdoor pursuits, and is a skydiving judge in international competitions.
  4. A STUDENT who survived a 4,000ft fall after her parachute failed to open during a skydiving holiday in America was recovering from her injuries at her father's home in Gloucestershire last night. Lynda Harding, 20, a chemistry student at Hull University, spent a week in intensive care in California with broken ribs, a punctured lung, a broken nose, muscular back injuries and concussion. On a visit to the Lake Elsinore centre near Los Angeles with friends from university, she tried to use her reserve parachute when her main canopy apparently jammed.The reserve chute carried her for a short distance but it became caught in the main canopy, which had not disconnected, and she hurtled towards the ground. Her father, Philip, 41, a violin maker, who flew to America to accompany his daughter home, said: "She is very lucky. She jumped at 4,000 feet, her parachute failed to open and she hit the ground probably at about 70 to 80 mph." Mr Harding, a widower, of Newent, added: "The odds of this happening must be a million to one." Experts believe some drag caused by the flapping, tangled parachutes must have slowed her descent. Miss Harding, who is expected to make a full recovery, said she could not recall what happened after she left the plane. "The only thing I remember is waking up in hospital." She was unconscious for four days. "I am totally amazed I am still alive." She fell on to grassy scrubland but may have escaped serious injury because she fell sideways instead of on her feet or bottom. Her father said it had been his daughter's ninth jump. He said: "She was very keen on parachuting but she is in two minds now."
  5. Bystanders at Rotorua Airport were sprayed with lead shot after a pair of 2.5kg skydiver's weights plummeted 762m, hitting the ground with such force that witness thought they were exploding bombs. The weights, made from black fabric bags filled with lead, are used as ballast to keep a falling skydiver stable. But during a routine jump on Sunday afternoon, skydiver Gregg Eagles left his weights tucked into the pouch that held his parachute secure in its backpack. When he released the ripcord, they fell to the ground, landing near the airport entrance with such force that police were called to investigate reports of homemade explosives being detonated. Police thought they might have been dealing with explosives left by a bomber and detonated when a car drove over them. They began an investigation to see if similar incidents had happened at other airports. Reports of the "bombs" were sent out on the news wires. One woman was slightly injured when she was peppered with lead pellets, but Detective Sergeant Mark Loper said someone could have been killed if the bags had scored a direct hit. Mr Eagles, a veteran of more than 500 jumps, had no idea he had lost the weights until he got a phone call yesterday morning. He said he did not see the weights because they "blended in" and he usually used larger ones made from 4-litre oil cans. "I really don't know how it happened ... I won't be using those weights again. "When I found out I thought, 'Oh no, what have I killed?' Somebody could have been really badly hurt," said Mr Eagles. Dr Chris Tindle, a physicist at Auckland University, said it was difficult to know the speed and force the weights would have reached when they hit the ground. But they were probably falling at terminal velocity. They would have had enough force to easily cave in a car roof and anyone hit would certainly have been killed. "It would put a great big dent in almost anything it hit." The Civil Aviation Authority is investigating.
  6. A SKYDIVER was killed and 11 others forced to jump for their lives in a tragedy more than 4000m above central Victoria yesterday. Simon Moline, 31, of Malvern, was sucked from the plane when his parachute opened while he was standing inside the rear door. His parachute snagged on the Cessna's tail, ripping it from the fuselage and sending the plane into a death spin over Nagambie. Brave pilot Barry Dawson fought to steady the stricken craft long enough for the 10 remaining skydivers on board to bail out before he escaped moments before impact. "I had no control. I just yelled at them to `Get out, get out'. I actually gave a `Mayday, mayday, mayday'," he said last night. One of the distressed survivors, instructor Kim Foster, said the pilot was screaming at the others to jump. "The plane started baulking all over the sky, and the pilot's yelling `Get out of the plane'," Ms Foster said. Another survivor, Paul Murphy, said jumpers used their instincts to escape. "I think self-preservation comes into it a lot," he said. A shaken Mr Murphy said Mr Dawson's actions saved lives. "I am not a pilot, but visibility and control of the plane would have been very limited due to the tail missing," he said. The single-engine Cessna Caravan crashed in a ball of flame at the Nagambie Skydiving Club air strip at Bailieston East about 1.15pm. Mr Moline, still alive, hit the ground near the plane's wreckage. Ambulance officers rushed to save him but he died of massive injuries soon after. "The weight of the person has actually pulled the back end off the plane," Sgt Rick Van De Parerd, of Benalla, said. Last night, Mr Moline's devastated family was trying to understand the tragedy. "I have all my other children here and we are grieving together," his father, John, said. The skydivers were practising for team competition at the time of the accident. Mr Moline was an experienced skydiver with about 2000 jumps in his log and was taking part in his eighth jump of the day. The plane had taken off about 1pm and was flying over the Goulburn Valley Highway. Shocked local Ron Sidebottom watched the fiery aftermath from the verandah of his Kettles Rd home just 300m away. "Out on the verandah I saw flames and smoke off in the paddocks. Then I heard woof, woof, woof and I looked up and saw the plane tail coming down through the sky," he said. "There were parachutists on either side, about three or four of them just floating down through the air along with the back half of the plane." Mr Dawson said he could scarcely believe he was alive. "I felt a sudden jolt from the rear of the aircraft. At the same time the aircraft started to spin out of control," he said. "I thought of dying right there, and then thought of my girlfriend and new baby daughter. "I couldn't bear the prospect of leaving them alone and never seeing them again. I just did whatever I had to to get out." Mr Dawson managed to rip open a jammed roller door which had shut tight on the nightmare ride down and jumped out at 180m. "We were about halfway down when I started getting out and the G-forces had shut the roller door. "I thought about riding it in, just for a split second but then I thought about my new baby daughter and my girlfriend. "I saw them alone if I died and decided not to. "If I was a second later getting out I would be dead. "My feet hit the ground and I just couldn't believe it." His emergency parachute opened just in time to get him clear of the fireball which erupted when the plane crashed. Mr Dawson said he was being thrown around inside the plane as he tried to reach the door. His helmet and one boot were ripped off as he was buffeted by debris and pieces of equipment being hurled around inside. He was the first of the survivors to reach the ground. "When I landed I was devastated to hear a parachutist had died," he said. Paul Murray, of the Australian Parachute Federation, praised Mr Dawson's efforts. "I think it's a very, very heroic task he's done to get out. It would have been a hard job to get out that door," Mr Murray said. "The sport does have its risks, but the people doing the sport do understand that these risks are there and they accept those risks." Two Australian Transport Safe ty Bureau investigators were on their way to the scene late last night. A coroner, police and the parachute federation were also investigating. One experienced skydiver said last night that in normal circumstances the parachutist would have about 55 seconds of free-fall before opening the chute. "It's very easy for the pins that hold the parachutes to be knocked while still in the plane," he said. "It would then start to inflate too soon, be sucked out, be wrapped around the tail and there would be little you could do about it." Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association president Bill Hamilton said the pilot would have known almost instantly the plane was in trouble when the parachutist crashed into the tail. "The weight of the body would upset the whole balance of the aircraft," Mr Hamilton said. The death is the first parachuting death in Australia this year. Two divers died last year, while one was killed in 1999. The parachute federation has more than 3000 registered jumpers.
  7. A NOVICE skydiver who fell 3,200ft after his parachute failed to open properly is back at home and expected to make a full recovery. Craig Paton, 26, was being cared for by his family in Kilmarnock last night, less than three weeks after cheating death when he hit the ground at more than 40mph. Mr Paton took the place of a friend at the last minute to make his first skydive jump from Strathallan airfield, near Auchterarder in Perthshire, on 8 April. His descent took a quarter of the normal four minutes after his main parachute malfunctioned. Mr Paton's fall was cushioned by landing on a grass embankment, missing a concrete road yards away that would have meant certain death. He escaped without a single broken bone, and tried to walk to an ambulance after remaining conscious after hitting the ground. Last night, Mr Paton's girlfriend, Diane Giels, 21, said she was delighted that he was back home after being discharged from Edinburgh Royal Infirmary on Monday. She said: "He is getting there, and a full recovery is guaranteed. He is able to walk about, but has not talked about his experience." Mr Paton was initially treated in intensive care for internal bleeding before being transferred to another ward in the hospital during his two-week stay. His terrifying jump from a Cessna light aircraft had followed several hours of skydive training at the airfield. He fell past two others in the group who had jumped before him after a static line that should have opened his parachute automatically failed to work. Just a few hundred feet from the ground, he tried to open his back-up parachute, but it became entangled in the first parachute. Mr Paton runs a newsagent and milk delivery business with his father, John, 52, in Kilmarnock. However, It is not known when he will be able to return to work. His father said after the accident that it was a miracle he had survived. He said: "Quite honestly, he shouldn't really be here. He only went up because someone had dropped out and he said he would go and do it for the fun. It was the first time he had ever done a jump. "He landed on the banking of a road which sits higher than a grass area and then slid or rolled down the banking. If he had hit the road he would not be here. "After he landed, Craig was wanting to sit up and walk out of the field. He had to be restrained because he wanted to get up and walk over to the ambulance." Mr Paton was taken to Ninewells Hospital in Dundee for emergency treatment before being transferred to Edinburgh. His father added: "Craig does weights and runs a lot and the doctors said that is one of the factors which has saved him. "He didn't smoke so his lungs are in great condition and he was always jogging or riding his mountain bike." An investigation into the accident has been launched by the British Parachute Association. Kieran Brady, owner of Skydive Strathallan, who piloted the plane involved, said the parachute that had malfunctioned had been used on numerous previous occasions and that such problems were very rare.
  8. PALATKA — To celebrate his 60th birthday and his forced retirement as an airline pilot, Larry Elmore jumped out of an airplane 60 times in one day. He was forced to retire from Trans World Airlines at age 60 because of Federal Aviation Administration rules on commercial pilots. So Tuesday, Elmore, of nearby Melrose in northeastern Florida, got together at Kay Larkin Airport with a support staff of parachute packers from Skydive Palatka and jumped 60 times to prove a point about his age. Jeff Colley, drop zone manager at Skydive Palatka, said Elmore made his first jump about 6:45 a.m. Tuesday and finished up about 3 p.m. Three planes and three pilots were used to ferry Elmore up for his jumps. Elmore, who started skydiving in 1986, donned a parachute, hopped in a plane, and parachuted down. Upon landing, he would shed his used chute, put on another held waiting for him, hop in the plane and go up for another jump. For the first 59 jumps, he exited the aircraft at 2,300 feet and opened his parachute immediately. On the final jump, Elmore skydived from 13,500 feet, Colley said. Alison Duquette, an FAA spokeswoman, said at age 60 pilots begin a progressive decline that could affect levels of safety for commercial passengers. Elmore has started a new job as a corporate pilot, Colley said.
  9. Two U.S. Navy parachutists were injured Tuesday when a training jump went awry, sending them crashing to the ground in a field near the U.S.-Mexico border. The SEAL team members' hard landings occurred shortly before 12:30 p.m. near Otay Mesa and Alta roads, east of Brown Field airport, a Heartland Fire Department dispatcher said. The members of the Navy's elite Leap Frogs skydiving unit reportedly got tangled in each other's equipment while taking part in an exercise at the Trident Jump Center in Otay Mesa. The parachutists were performing what is known as a corkscrew maneuver. They began the jump at 12,000 feet. As they parachuted toward earth the team members were connected to one another. The problem came when they were unable to disconnect. After the landing, medics worked to stabilize the patients for about half-hour before loading them into ambulances. The parachutists were transported to Sharp Memorial Hospital, the dispatcher said. The two patients suffered abdomen bruises and back pains. They were both listed in stable condition and were expected to fully recover. About The Leap Frogs The U.S. Navy Parachute Team is a fifteen-man team comprised entirely of U.S. Navy SEALs -- Sea, Air, and Land commandos. Each member comes to the team for a three-year tour from one of the two Naval Special Warfare Groups located on the east and west coasts. On completion of the tour, members return to operational SEAL Teams.
  10. A 33-year-old Kentucky man, lured to Manhattan by its skyscrapers, parachuted from a downtown office building last night and landed on the sixth-floor rooftop of an adjacent building, police said. Donald Mathis of Louisville was arrested at the scene, 310 Greenwich St., and charged with reckless endangerment and criminal trespassing. He was not injured. "Police said he came to New York for the stunt because "there are no tall buildings in Kentucky."
  11. An Ohio man BASE jumping from West Virginia's New River Gorge Bridge early Saturday morning missed his landing spot and got tangled in some trees before releasing himself from his harness and falling some 40 feet. According to a report today by the National Park Service, 33-year-old Shannon Murphy, of Wadsworth, launched into the darkness at 1:40 A.M. The sky was overcast and the gorge was full of fog, making it nearly impossible for him to see his landing zone. After friends John Maggio, 37, and Andrew Pulton, 20, placed a 911 call, rescuers including a team of rangers, county police, fire and EMS personnel got to Murphy, who was semi-conscious and suffering from a severe head injury and a fractured arm, 45 minutes later. He was stabilized and taken to a local hospital before being transferred to a trauma center in Charleston, West Virginia. The NPS report stated that alcohol may have been a contributing factor in the accident. Murphy will be charged with illegal aerial moves; Maggio has been charged with aiding and abetting. An investigation is underway. Four men caught BASE jumping off the Virginia's New River Gorge Bridge in December were fined $600 a piece after pleading guilty to aerial delivery in a magistrate's court. Tourists visiting the Fayette Station area of the New River Gorge National River snapped photos of two of the four jumpers in mid-air and dialed 911 as the group was still free falling towards the gorge floor. Rangers and several law enforcement agents were dispatched to the scene and, aided by vehicle-descriptions given by the tourists in a second 911 call , - apprehended the men. BASE jumping from the New River Gorge Bridge is illegal except for one day of the year, when the annual Bridge Day is held. The 2001 Bridge Day is scheduled for October 20.
  12. DELAND, Fla. (CP-AP) - An experienced Canadian skydiver died after making a tricky high-speed turn too close to the ground, crashing into the pavement at a popular Florida skydiving centre. Stephane Drapeau, 30, from Beloeil, Que., was making a routine jump until he made the high-speed turn at an extremely low altitude as he approached the landing area at Skydive DeLand near the municipal airport. Drapeau had about 4,700 jumps before Friday's accident. DeLand Police Lieut. John Bradley said Drapeau slammed into a strip of pavement at a high speed causing massive injuries. ''He was wearing a helmet, but at times they can go as fast as 80 mph (130 km/h) when they make that turn,'' Bradley told the Canadian Press. ''His chute deployed properly ... His canopy probably collapsed or when he made the turn he was so close he just impaled the ground.'' Though the case is being treated as an accident, it has been turned over to the Federal Aviation Administration, Bradley added. If performed correctly, the manoeuvre brings skydivers in at a high rate of speed but allows for a horizontal glide about one metre off the ground, usually resulting in a soft landing, said Skydive DeLand General Manager Mike Johnston. ''He misjudged his landing,'' he said, also noting that Drapeau appeared to have made the manoeuvre too close to the ground. A pair of paramedics joined a skydiving doctor in treating Drapeau at the scene. He was flown by helicopter to Halifax Medical Center in nearby Daytona Beach, where he later died, police said. Just an hour-and-a-half before the fatal fall, a 42-year-old sky diver from Holland suffered a broken ankle after making a hard landing at Skydive DeLand, the Daytona Beach News Journal reported Saturday. Johnston said Drapeau was a frequent visitor to the popular DeLand skydiving spot, making the trip from Canada almost every winter. Although he didn't teach there, he was accredited to do so and worked for a parachute centre in Quebec, the Journal reported. Drapeau became the second person to die at Skydive DeLand in four months. Chantal Bonitto, a 31-year-old New Yorker, died Dec. 27 when her parachute failed. In April 1999, Beatrice Vanderpol, a 55-year-old French woman, also fell to her death because her parachute failed. A spokesperson for the Department of Foreign Affairs in Ottawa said Canadian officials are looking into the accident. ''We're in contact with our consulate in Miami and we are trying to find out more,'' Patrick Riel said. Drapeau's family has been notified and are being offered consular assistance, he said.
  13. TAIPING: A police parachutist suffered a bad fall from a 1,500m jump after his parachute strings became entangled mid way before the landing. Safaruddin Mohd Ariffin, 36, who suffered head and neck injuries, was rushed to the Taiping Hospital in the 10.45am incident at the old airport in Tekah here yesterday. A member of Special Task Force formerly known as Vat 69--an elite police commando unit based in Ulu Kinta near Ipoh--Safaruddin was among 25 members in a parachuting test at the old airport over the last three days. Safaruddin was transferred to the Ipoh Hospital where his condition is reported to be stable. The father of three children from Teluk Intan had made 18 jumps in the past. It is learnt he had safely jumped out of a light aircraft at a height of about 1,500m but his parachute strings became entangled mid way before he landed. Seven others who jumped with him landed safely.
  14. AIR traffic controllers thought the pilot who asked permission "to come overhead at 1,500 feet and throw one of our passengers out" was joking. They watched, amused, as "a bundle" fell out and disappeared near hangars at Coventry airport. Only when they saw fire and rescue crews rushing across the airfield 20 minutes later did they realise that what they had seen was not a joke. The "bundle" dropped from the aircraft was Dave Clements, 45, a mechanic, of Dunkeswell, Devon, one of the crew of the 1944 Douglas DC3 which had been dropping poppy petals over a war memorial on Remembrance Day last year. Mr Clements had not, however, been thrown out. He had attempted a parachute jump. "His exit through the rear door was uneventful but before he cleared the aircraft he struck part of it, breaking his left arm," said an Air Accident Investigations Branch report on the incident, published yesterday. Mr Clements's descent became "violently unstable" as he struggled to open his parachute. He also failed to release the reserve chute. At 200 feet the main parachute opened partially but could not save him from landing on his back on the hangar, suffering broken ribs and internal injuries. The report said the control tower had asked the pilot what had happened and was told a parachutist had jumped. It added: "Because the bundle seen leaving the aircraft had appeared small the controllers continued to believe that they were the victims of a practical joke." The AAIB report recommended modifications to the aircraft to prevent similar accidents occurring.
  15. LONGMONT — The Mile-Hi Skydiving Center has landed in legal trouble. The business was fined $500 and ordered to pay $138 in court costs Monday after the company's attorney entered a guilty plea to a third-degree trespassing charge, a misdemeanor. The plea avoids a trial scheduled to begin today. In August, the company's president Jeffrey Sands, 37, landed his helicopter on a farm to retrieve a cut-away parachute that fell on to the property at 7457 St. Vrain Road, according to a sheriff's report. A drop zone staff member got out of the helicopter and told a woman who rents horses on adjacent property that he was retrieving the drop zone's parachute. William Jones, 70, whose wife owns the farm, called the Boulder County Sheriff's Office to file a trespassing complaint. Jones said Monday all he really wanted was a letter from the district attorney or sheriff's office telling Sands to stay off the property. "A lot of the neighbors have had problems with the skydivers," Jones said. "In the past he (Sands) has had no respect about going on to people's property." Jones said he was unsure if Sands received a letter but that "he was told if he comes on the property again, it will cost him some more money." Deputy District Attorney Ken Kupfner said he specifically requested that the misdemeanor charge name Sands' business in hopes that Sands and his employees will be more accountable for their future actions. Sands said he does his best to be sensitive to the community. To avoid problems, he said his company — operated out of Vance Brand Airport since 1995 — stopped using detachable rip cords in 1998. The company airplane flies double the 800-foot requirement and reduces the propeller's rpm when flying low to avoid noise complaints. He said the company policy is for a land crew to seek permission from property owners before retrieving items that inadvertently fall on private lands. "I want to be a good neighbor," Sands said. He called the August incident of landing a helicopter on private property "a fluke situation" because the woman the staff member got into an argument with had complained about noise before and threatened to steal and damage the next parachute she found. He also said that he thought he landed on Boulder County open space land and did not intentionally land on Jones' private property.
  16. Iona DiFilippi makes one of her dreams come true by jumping out of a plane 10,000 feet in the air. Strapped to a ‘chute and sporting mechanic’s overalls — the skydiving suits were too big for her small frame — Iona DiFilippi said she had no fear as the plane ascended to 10,000 feet and she prepared to leap to the ground. “The first micro-second after I tumbled out of the plane I thought, ‘Why am I doing this?’ But after that it was wonderful,” she said Sunday from her Salem home. DiFilippi has wanted to jump out of a plane for the past 60 years. She finally took the plunge Saturday to celebrate her 85th birthday. Nose cold and wind rushing by, she said the 30 seconds of freefall was over too soon — a little like the years she was busy raising a family and didn’t have time to go leaping out of planes. “The time just goes by so fast,” she said of the years she wanted to skydive but never got around to it. So a few years ago she decided her 85th birthday would be the day to become a daredevil. Taking advantage of a sunny break in the rain and hail above Creswell, the skydiving crew jumped in the plane and made it all possible. Because it was her first jump, DiFilippi was hooked to an instructor. After the pair leapt from the plane and DiFilippi got over her brief moment of fright, she said the world was beautiful as they glided toward it. “It really is a wonderful sensation, floating down and seeing the horizon so far away,” she said. Landing firmly and safely on her legs, DiFilippi said getting hurt wasn’t any more a concern than her age. In fact, she welcomes people of all ages and abilities to try it out. “It isn’t just for healthy people. It’s something that people of all abilities can do.” DiFilippi’s only complaint was of the brisk spring air at 10,000 feet. “Next time I’m going to do it in the summer.”
  17. Included in this feature are three parts related to the death of Jan Davis at Lodi a week ago. The first part is a recent post by Jan Davis to rec.skydiving in response to the death of a fellow skydiver a while ago. Ironically the post deals with the risk risk of camera line snags, which seems to have been part of the tragic chain of events that led to her death. The second part is an article from a local newspaper regarding the Jan's accident and the third is an article about the ongoing FAA investigation. Ring sights and suspension linesFrom: Flyincamra ([email protected]) Subject: Ring sights and suspension lines Newsgroups: rec.skydiving Date: 2001-03-26 09:52:24 PST After reading of the tragic death of a fellow camera flyer, it brought to mind my discomfort at seeing the newer small camera helmets. My helmet is a headhunter with a big squared off front for a still mount. My ring sight is mounted close in and is virtually covered up by my still platform. The newer helmets, whether they be top or side mount, seem to have the ring sight by neccessity sticking way out from the helmet... long posts going every which way. This weekend I was on the plane with a new cameraflyer with just such a setup. He said as soon as he was sure where he wanted it set, he would have the posts on his ring sight cut down so no excess would stick out. Still.... the post from the helmet to the sight was very long..... It made me think of the way we tape the shoes of tandems that have hooks on them instead of eyelets for shoelaces, but yet we fly with huge hooks sticking out of our helmets..... I don't know the configuration on the helmet the deceased was wearing, but that was the first question that came to my mind. You know... this really doesn't seem like a difficult design problem to me. It would seem possible to form the ring sight directly to the camera helmet and still incorporate a way to make the sight adjustable... thereby doing away with the posts that are sticking out there like a target in a violent malfunction. Yesterday, after thousands of camera jumps, I had the new and unsettling experience of feeling my left riser hang up on the back portion of my top mount video camera. I don't know how or why as it was only momentary, but I felt it pulling up at the back of my helmet, pinning my head down so I couldn't look up to see what was happening. Just as I started think about reaching to unclip the helmet, the riser popped loose and let go. No biggy, nothing serious..... but it made me wonder if I could get out of that helmet fast enough if I needed to...... My sincerest condolences to the family and friends of Richard Lancaster. Jan Devil Skydiver killed after chute tanglesBy Andy Furillo Bee Staff Writer (Published April 1, 2001) A skydiver was killed outside Lodi on Saturday when her reserve parachute got tangled in a camera mounted on her helmet, officials said. Janice Irene Davis, 49, from Hollister, died in a vineyard just west of Highway 99 near Jahant Road. She had made nearly 3,000 jumps before the accident. The Hollister-area resident and other sky divers had jumped from a plane at about 9,000 feet, according to the San Joaquin County Sheriff's Department. Bill Dause, the owner of the Parachute Center in Lodi, said Davis' main chute "failed to work" at the time of the 2:03 p.m. tragedy. He said she ejected the main chute and deployed the reserve. Davis had been using the camera to videotape two other divers. "Somewhere in the process of releasing the first and deploying the second, she inadvertently became a little unstable, causing the bridle of the reserve chute to become unactive," Dause said. Dause said a similar fatality occurred recently in the eastern United States and "the camera definitely was the culprit." He said the two deaths should prompt parachute enthusiasts to examine the practice of mounting cameras on their helmets. He described Davis as "a very outgoing, very caring person." Within hours of Davis' death, Dause was back up in the air with skydiving students. "We didn't slow down at all," Dause said. "She wouldn't want us to stop." FAA seeks clues from sky diver's video cameraThe Record (Published April 2, 2001) ACAMPO -- Authorities said Sunday it will take more time to determine what happened in the final moments of parachutist Janice Irene Davis' life, because the video camera she was carrying broke on impact. The Federal Aviation Administration this week will begin attempting to repair a videotape that was inside the shattered camera. It may show why the 49-year-old Hollister woman's main parachute failed to open during a Saturday afternoon dive at the Parachute Center in Acampo, San Joaquin County coroner's Deputy Tom Scott said. Meanwhile, coroner's officials Sunday said Davis died on impact from injuries she sustained in the fall. Davis landed in a vineyard about 300 yards south of Jahant Road, just west of Highway 99, shortly after 2 p.m. Saturday. She was an experienced parachutist hired to videotape two other jumpers Saturday, those who knew her said. Authorities believe Davis fell 13,000 feet to her death. Her main chute apparently failed to open correctly and her backup chute got caught on the video camera attached to her helmet, officials said. Scott said the FAA has taken over the investigation. "We know nobody pushed her out of the plane, we know nobody toyed with the chute," he said. "As far as our investigation is concerned, we don't go any farther than the toxicology reports." Investigators from the FAA's Oakland Flight Standards District Office could not be contacted Sunday.
  18. A TRAINEE skydiver was seriously ill in hospital last night after his parachute failed to open during a jump from 3,200ft. Craig Paton, 26, hit the ground at 40mph at Auchterarder, Perth and Kinross. He was taken to Ninewells Hospital in Dundee suffering from internal bleeding and back and chest injuries and was later transferred to the Royal Infirmary in Edinburgh where his condition was said to be critical but stable. Mr Paton, who comes from Kilmarnock and is a member of the Skydiver Strathallan Club, was one of four people booked on a flight leaving Strathallan airfield on Saturday evening. When his main parachute failed to open properly, Mr Paton tried to deploy his second parachute but it became entangled in the first. He managed to deploy it partially a few hundred feet before he hit the ground, which helped to lessen the impact. His father said it was a "miracle" that his son was still alive. John Paton, 52, a milkman from Kilmarnock, said: "The doctors who saw him have said that he should not be there. He has suffered massive internal bleeding after bursting the vessels to his kidneys and lungs. He has a broken back and may have sprained his ankle. "Of course, we are all praying to God for him, but I’m sure that he’ll pull through because he’s fit, active and above all, very stubborn. "Believe me after this frightening experience he won’t be doing anything as dangerous as this again." Craig’s mother Marion, sister, Dawn, and girlfriend were at his bedside. Kieran Brady, chairman of the skydiving club, described Mr Paton as a student parachutist who had paid £15 for his jump. He did not know if Mr Paton had completed a solo jump before but knew that he was not a fully qualified skydiver. "It probably only took him about a minute before he landed in the airfield," Mr Brady said. "Normally it would be four minutes. He was conscious and talking, but he said he was in real pain. He just said, ‘Whatever do you think happened?’ He wanted to tell me, but I didn’t think we should discuss it at that point." A spokesman for the British Parachute Association confirmed that the incident will be investigated. He said that parachute failures were rare.
  19. A SKYDIVER was critically ill in hospital last night after falling more than 3,000 feet when his parachute failed to open properly. Craig Paton, 26, hit the ground at more than 40mph when his first ever skydive went tragically wrong. After his main parachute malfunctioned, he fell to the ground in just 60 seconds, when a normal descent from 3,200ft should take four minutes. Mr Paton landed on a lush grass embankment which cushioned his fall, missing a concrete road and certain death by only a few feet. Although he suffered not a single broken bone, he remained in a drug-induced coma in intensive care at Edinburgh Royal Infirmary last night with internal bleeding in his chest. Mr Paton's mother, Marion, and sister, Dawn, 21, were at his bedside last night where his condition was described as "serious but stable". Speaking from his Kilmarnock home, his father, John, said last night: "Quite honestly he shouldn't really be here." Mr Paton, who is single, joined work colleagues for the charity jump on Saturday when another man pulled out. After a day of training at Strathallan Airfield, near Auchterarder, he leapt from a Cessna light aircraft in a static line jump, a technique used for beginners. Two people had already jumped out of the aircraft without problems as it circled over the Perthshire airfield. But when he jumped out a few seconds later, the jumpmaster noticed immediately that there was a serious problem. The parachute malfunction meant Mr Paton began falling so fast he overtook his friends, who were enjoying a controlled descent. As he came within a few hundred feet of the ground, the stricken jumper tried to release the back-up parachute which would save his life. But it became entangled in the first parachute and the man was still travelling at 40 miles per hour when he ploughed into the ground. The plane, flown by Skydive Strathallan owner Kieran Brady, immediately headed back to the runway to summon help. Despite the massive impact, Mr Paton was conscious when rescuers reached him. Suffeirng severe chest injuries, he was rushed to Ninewells Hospital in Dundee by the specialist trauma team. He was later transferred to Edinburgh Royal Infirmary. Mr Paton's father, John, 52, who runs a newsagent and dairy business with his only son, told The Scotsman: "He only went up because someone had dropped out and he said he would go and do it for the fun. It was the first time he had ever done a jump." He added: "The police have told us that he landed on the banking of a road which sits higher than a grass area and then slid or rolled down the banking. "If he had hit the road he would not be here. "They are keeping him doped up to make sure he does not move about too much while they try and find out what is causing the bleeding in his chest. "Craig does weights and runs a lot and the doctors said that is one of the factors which has saved him." Tayside Police and the British Parachute Association confirmed yesterday they are investigating the cause of the accident. A police spokesman said: "We were called to Strathallan Airfield at 7.30pm because of an accident involving a parachutist. "Inquiries are still ongoing into the incident, but it sounds asif he was pretty lucky to survive the fall." Mr Brady, of Skydive Strathallan, said the parachute which malfunctioned had been used safely on numerous previous occasions. He added that such problems are "very rare".
  20. Two gear major skydiving manufacturers recently launched new products - Sky Systems and Parasport Italia. Sky Systems launched the Hurricane. This new freefly helmet together with the NVERTIGO will lead Sky System's attack on the ever growing market and demand for freeflying head protection. Parasport Italia (Parasport Skydiving Equipment) launched the Skytornic FX. The new Skytronic is being positioned to compete with the Pro-Track and Pro-Dytter in the heavy-weight audible altimeter and skydiving computer class. It's about time. Hurricane Freefly Helmet from Sky Systems Ltd Hurricane is the new freefly helmet from Sky Systems Ltd. (the makers of Factory Diver, Sidewinder and OXYGN skydiving helmets). This carbon fiber, Kevlar reinforced helmet is by far the most comfortable freefly helmet available on the market. Sky Systems has taken your thoughts and designed a new freefly helmet to meet your needs. The Hurricane introduces a new shape for a more comfortable fit, and has external audible ports over each ear for a more clear sound transmission. Utilizing similar technology as the Nvertigo, the Hurricane features the Sky Dial tightening mechanism to tighten the forehead and neck areas. Sizes are currently available in S-M and L-XL. More sizes may be offered soon. Links: See the Hurricane listing in the Gear section Visit the Sky Systems web site Buy a Hurricane from Square1 Skytronic FX by Parasport Skydiving Equipment Finally released the new Skytronic FX! Several months of studies and tests, together with the experience developed in the past years with the Skytronic and the Skytronic Pro, allowed Parasport Skydiving Equipment to develop this new instrument. Features include: Three programmable warning altitudes PLUS a countdown timer, all in a single instrument Loud and easily recognizable alarms Signals go off only if necessary (only the breakoff alarm goes off if not in freefall) Metric/English units in a single instrument Electronic logbook stores data about the last 200 jumps Totals freefall time and number of jumps Statistics on altitudes Low battery indication Can be connected to a PC (external interface optional) According to the Parasport web site the computer interface for this will be ready and available in June 2001. The Skytronic FX can be installed on the polycarbonate version of the Z1 STI just replacing the metal plate with the one designed for the FX. It is also available the replacement holder for the Z1 Alpha STI. The Skytronic FX should also fit comfortably into most popular skydiving helmet designs. Links: See the Skytronic FX listing in the Gear section Visit the Parasport Skydiving Equipment web site
  21. At age 24, after four years with the same fantastic person, I knew it was time to pop the big question to my wonderful girlfriend, Marie. But I knew that an extraordinary person like her deserved nothing but an extraordinary marriage proposal. I knew that it couldn't be over a dinner, or up in lights at a stadium or anything like that. Not that those ways are bad; they just aren't really me, and I wanted something that was unique. Then it came to me. I have been a skydiver for a few years and have accumulated 113 skydives to my credit. What better way to propose than to jump out of a plane! After all, marriage is "the big leap," right? So, on Valentine's Day, while my girlfriend and the rest of the world dutifully spent the day working, I hopped in my car and drove to Skydance Skydiving in Davis. The night before, I had taken a white bath towel, cut it in half and written the words "Marry Me" on it. When I showed up at the dropzone in Davis, I was a little more nervous than usual for the skydive. But once the cameraman and I got in the plane, the routines of the dive started coming back to me. The cameraman, Tim, who was going to be filming and photographing my skydive, turned to me at 11,000 feet in the plane and yelled, "You ready for this?" I wasn't sure whether he was referring to the skydive or the wedding proposal, but I shouted back, "Heck, yeah!" The door opened and the whoosh of the wind rushed in and filled my ears. Tim climbed outside the plane and turned to face me. I stuck my head out into the fierce wind and started the exit count: "Ready, set, go!" Free fall. There really is nothing like it in the world, and words do not do it justice. As soon as I exited the plane, the technique took over and all nervous energy turned into the magic flow of a skydive. I stabilized and unfurled the sign, which flapped madly in the wind. So there we were -- falling toward Earth at 120 mph. It was beautiful; peaceful, actually. After a little more than 30 seconds of free fall, my altimeter read 4,500 feet. It was pull time. The parachute opened, and I sank down to a tiptoe landing. The cameraman and I rushed into the video editing room to see how the video turned out. To our delight, everything turned out fantastic. Tim took the time to edit the song I wanted on it, Peter Gabriel's "In Your Eyes." It was now 6:30 p.m. on Valentine's Day, and Marie had just gotten home from work. I'd set up the family room with lighted candles and three packages. She had a note in front of her wishing her a happy Valentine's Day and instructions to not ask any questions until the final gift had been opened. She opened the first gift, Peter Gabriel's album "So," with the song "In Your Eyes" on it. She smiled and then went for gift No. 2: a roll of undeveloped film (which contained the still photographs of the skydive that she could develop the next day). She looked at me quizzically but remembered not to ask any questions. Now it was time for the big final gift. She opened it: the skydiving videotape I had filmed earlier in the day. She put the video into the VCR, not knowing what was on it. The tape began with me saying, "I'm ready to take the leap." Peter Gabriel's chorus of "In Your Eyes" rolled on and the video progressed. The door of the plane opened and Marie watched with eager anticipation. I exited the plane and unfurled the sign, which was at first so flappy she couldn't read it. The camera man flew in closer and then the words became crystal clear: "Marry Me." She read it ... she cried ... and she said yes. Brad Koch lives in Pleasanton.
  22. Oren Peri has skydived all over the country, but the thought of floating over Long Island's scenic East End is enough to make him want to relocate here from New Paltz, he says. Peri, a carpenter as well as a professional skydiver, was one of several skydivers who testified before the Riverhead Town board Tuesday night in support of a local skydiving school's request for an extended, five-year lease within the industrial core of the former Grumman property at Calverton. Skydive Long Island, which says it is the only skydiving school in the area, needs to be named a qualified sponsor by the town to secure an extension on their one-year lease. With the long-term lease, the company will seek $700,000 in financing for business development and to buy a larger plane that can carry more skydivers. "I was limited at Spadaro," said Skydive owner Raymond Maynard, referring to the small airport in East Moriches. "Here I could grow, but there's no way I can get financing unless I have the security of a longer lease." While many supporters at the hearing welcomed the company, some safety concerns were raised. A letter was filed by Peter Wynkoop, a union representative for the National Air Traffic Control Association, who noted in an interview that "two pilots had to take evasive action" from jumpers. "Calverton is one of the busiest airways," Wynkoop said. Maynard said one incident was caused by an instructor who had difficulty speaking English and was immediately fired. "If everyone is in communication, everything can be coordinated," said Maynard. Maynard also said he believes his operation would actually decrease air traffic in the area because a skydiving symbol over Calverton will now be incorporated in the Federal Aviation Administration's aeronautical sectional chart. He says he also abides by the guidelines established by the U.S. Parachute Association, a nonprofit safety trade organization. In 15 years, the company has had one fatality with a skydiver in 1989, which Maynard said was the result of a jumper releasing himself from his parachute before landing. One of the company's planes crashed in 1991, killing the pilot and injuring three jumpers, which Maynard said was due to a faulty engine piston. A parachute association spokesman said he was not aware of any complaints received about the company. The company has been at Calverton since September, leasing two buildings for close to $30,000 a year and using the 10,000-foot runway. His company operated for 15 years out of a trailer at Spadaro, which Maynard says was an "inadequate facility" that could not handle larger planes. His two single-engine planes could only carry up to four jumpers and a pilot. The turbine engine planes he is looking to lease can carry up to 14 jumpers. If he was able to buy the larger plane, he said he could quadruple his business to 4,000 jumpers annually. He said he'd also like to eventually buy property at Calverton to build a wind tunnel so he can operate year-round. The tunnel would create a 120-mile-per-hour airflow that would lift "jumpers" straight up, giving them a free falling sensation. Town Supervisor Robert Kozakiewicz said he didn't see a "downside" to having the company at Calverton, but needs to look into safety concerns raised by some residents. Councilman Edward Densieski said he wasn't opposed to the business, but said he would like to see businesses such as aviation retroffiters and corporate charter jets lured to Calverton. Jack O'Connor of Grubb & Ellis, the property's exclusive marketer, said he recently had interest from five aviation-related companies interested in coming to Calverton. Skydive Long Island web site
  23. An inquest in Cardiff has heard how a Welsh Guardsman plummeted to his death when he lost control of his parachute over a Spanish holiday resort. A verdict of accidental death was recorded on 30-year-old Carl Henly who was on a New Year skydiving holiday on the Costa Brava when a formation jump went wrong. Mr Henly, an experienced parachutist with more than 150 jumps under his belt, was seen to break away from a formation of parachutists who jumped from a plane at 2,000 feet. Skydiving expert Kieron Brady told how the soldier lost control after flying away from the landing area in an "unsafe manoeuvre." Mr Brady, vice-chairman of the British Parachute Association, said that halfway through the descent Mr Henly flew away towards the town of Empuriabrava near the French border. He told the inquest: "The handling of the parachute as it descended closer to the ground was radical and erratic. It was a manoeuvre inconsistent with safe practice." Skydiving holidays The inquest heard that the parachute spiralled into the ground and Mr Henly died instantly from multiple injuries including a torn major artery. Mr Henly, of Rhiwbina, Cardiff, was based at army barracks in Aldershot at the time of the tragedy. The soldier - who had won a General Service Medal for service in Ulster - spent his holidays skydiving all over the world. After the hearing, his sister Amanda Culver said: "It would have been typical of him to break away and go sightseeing over the town. "Apparently it was common practice with divers at the flying school. Carl was a larger than life character - he loved parachuting, it was his life." During his army service, Mr Henly had visited Belize, Kenya, America and Canada on exercises. He had recently returned to the Welsh Guards following an attachment with the School of Infantry at Warminster in Wiltshire.
  24. DECATUR, Texas (AP) - Rob Franklin's skydiving dreams are on hold for now. Instead of making his maiden jump Saturday, Franklin, 32, ended up with a broken foot, concussion, gashes in his head and lip and a sore back when the skydiving school's plane went down in a field north of Fort Worth with 22 aboard. At least five others also were injured, one seriously. Franklin, a firefighter in the Dallas suburb of Lancaster, said he heard pilot Tom Bishop utter an expletive before he looked out the window and saw trees and grass fast approaching. "I was looking straight at the ground and that's all I really remember," Franklin said Sunday from his hospital bed in Fort Worth. "The next thing I remember is waking up laying on the ground. They told me I walked away from the plane, but I don't remember that." Franklin, William Rhodes, 28, and Glenn Hodgson, 31, were all in fair condition Sunday at Harris Methodist Fort Worth hospital, while Tim Trudeau, 45, was in serious condition, said Laura Van Hoosier, a hospital spokeswoman. "They all have orthopedic-type injuries," she said. Two victims whose names were not released were in good condition at John Peter Smith Hospital, the Fort Worth Star-Telegram reported. A 34-year-old man was being treated for neck injuries and a 33-year-old man was being treated for leg injuries. Bishop, 58, said the takeoff was normal until the plane, a 1956 DeHavilland single-engine Otter, reached about 300 feet. He said a wing was caught by a "dust devil," a whirlwind that normally travels along the ground like a small tornado and becomes visible because of the dust it sucks into the air. "Eyewitness reports said they saw the dust devil," Bishop said Sunday. "We hit one about two weeks ago that shook us up pretty bad. It's very strange at this time of year to have those things." The plane skidded into a grove of trees and its left wing snapped off. Bishop said Skydive Texas, the school owned by him and his wife, Jean, planned to fly Sunday. Skydive Texas is based at Bishop Airport, a private airfield east of Decatur, about 40 miles north of Fort Worth. A Federal Aviation Administration spokesman said Sunday an investigation into the cause of the crash was continuing. Franklin, who was preparing to jump while strapped to an instructor, said he had always wanted to skydive, but isn't sure if he'll try it again. "It's something I've always wanted to do and I got the opportunity, so I took it," Franklin said. "It wasn't a fun day."
  25. Joel Griffin, who said she felt as though her body had exploded, after the accident, and leaving court yesterday. Joel Griffin thought she was dying. Having crashed to the ground from a height of 3,000 metres, she had no feeling in her legs and was in excruciating pain. Told by doctors she would never walk again, the 25-year-old skydiver has overcome that, but still suffers back pain, cannot play many sports and is unable to work fulltime, she told the NSW District Court yesterday. Mrs Griffin, who has a six-month-old child, is suing the Byron Bay Skydiving Centre, claiming it was negligent by misleading her and failing to safely supervise the jump. Her counsel, Mr Andrew Morrison, SC, said in his opening address that despite his client's concerns that the wind was too strong, she was persuaded to go and reassured it was safe. Mrs Griffin had been told in her training that she should not skydive if the wind exceeded 15 knots, he said. Meteorological evidence would show the wind was well over 15-20 knots. The accident happened on November 2, 1995. It was her 28th jump and part of a publicity stunt. The skydiving business had been sold, and the old owners had planned to exchange contracts in midair. Before the aircraft took off, Mrs Griffin said, the safety officer on the ground, Mr Steve Lewis, had said to her "the wind was a bit suss" and that he would measure it. She had told him she would not go, but he said: "It'll be okay. I'll radio the plane if it gets any stronger." "Once we got up I noticed there was a lot of white caps on the water, and trees were moving around a lot." She told the instructors in the aircraft, who told her "it'd be okay". As they were climbing out of the aircraft, she checked with the pilot whether Mr Lewis had made any communication about wind speed. He had not, and they went ahead with the jump. "I could tell the wind was very strong," she said. "I was flying along just going straight ... and I felt myself pull backwards really hard and looked up and saw my parachute was tangled. I just started to spiral." She landed extremely hard, she said, and it felt as though her body had exploded. "At first I thought I was going to die. I couldn't feel my legs." She was flown to Lismore Hospital with a fractured spine and was told she would never walk again. She was later transferred to Sydney for surgery. Since the accident Mrs Griffin has taken part in two tandem dives, but in these jumps the instructor took the full brunt of the landing, she said. "Skydiving for me is a passion, and I guess I was denying that anything was wrong with me to get up and do it again." She wants compensation for past and future medical expenses, and for economic loss. The hearing continues. Photos: Rick Stevens and Jon Reid