kleggo

I enjoyed the art, yet it was still grim. be well

the last few seconds were amazingly grim, even from my perspective. thanks for posting

Contact Rick Kuhns @ Skydive Ricks in Ohio (may be closed). Rick has competed in Accuracy for 40+ years including podiuming this year.

or your local CReW enthusiast.

not me WTF is uhuck???

consider asking UPT or Chuting Star directly????

rigger rob bumped it

old thread but this made me laugh. I guess the author is not familiar with CReW

I've seen a few where just the controller was visible in the "rig" and no other components were present.

Steve used to let me go last occasionally out of the DAC-3 while we were jumping Costerson's ranch in Bakersfield. very occasionally.

The canopies marketed as wingsuit canopies meet those requirements, but check with the manufacturers about opening shock when jumping "slick". I jump Squirrel Epicene Pro and Omicron and openings are quite brisk when jumping sans wing suit. They typically won't last as long as a typical full ZP canopy.

sounds like you need to travel to TF and attend or audit a class from Tom.

take me to Norway. I'll jump with you. I don't need more gear. ps I'm 66

I posted this on FB a few weeks ago. I had a very special day on Saturday July 6th. I spent the day at Skydive Perris with friends. We were there to JUMP THE JET!! Perris has had a McDonnel Douglas DC9 since about 2006. I last made a jump from it in 2007. It was a very good experience and I cried that it sat at Perris mostly unused and un-jumped since then. FYI, info in the 3 paragraphs below have not been fact-checked, they are just my understanding of the situation. Over the past several years the owners of the DZ, Ben, Diane, Melanie and Pat Conatser spent nearly a million dollars (or more) to; extend the runway, update the avionics and sort other details. The biggest sticking point in flying the plane and jumpers was finding pilots that are both rated in type and current (there are not many DC9s still flying). Perris was able to find a qualified crew based in Miami who fly for a South American airline. Bottom line, the Conatsers spent vast amounts of money and sweat equity to bring the DC9 back on-line for jumping, very likely with no chance of ever getting full payback for their efforts. This may not technically meet the definition of altruism, but it’s close enough for me and I am very grateful for their efforts. Blah Blah Blah, on to the jump. A typical ride to altitude in a skydiving plane is a cramped, sweaty affair. About 20 of us are either packed in a$$hole to belly button or side to side on unpadded benches. Climbing to 13000 feet AGL takes 18 – 20 minutes as we spiral up while listening to the turbine powered propellers claw us to altitude. Its quite nice when the door finally opens and we exit the plane into the 100 MPH propblast from the side of the fuselage. The jet? So much different. Seventy of us sit in nicely padded airline seats that are far superior to current airline seating with the evil minimum pitch that packs people into “economy plus”. Even with a backpack on there is plenty of leg room as we sit belted in place. The energy / fear / excitement in the jet is palpable. Nearly everyone is making their first jet jump and even those with thousands of jumps are back to the excitement of student status jumps. Takeoff and climb to altitude are quiet. Just like you experience when you fly on Southwest. The air conditioning works and the ride up is comfy. But, it is a VERY SHORT ride to altitude. From takeoff roll to jump run takes 6 -7 minutes! The greenlight goes on and we start down the aisle to the “door”. Remember, this is a DC9, very similar to a Boeing 727 (the airplane that DB Cooper chose to hijack since it has a ramp under the tail and facilitated his jump with hundreds of thousand of $$). We get to the ramp (no steps) and launch into the sky ocean. I back looped out and had a great view of the jet flying away and other jumpers flying out. At that point it was just another skydive, though one where due to the exit speed and dawdling jumpers ahead of me in line, I opened a long way from the DZ, but that’s another story. What else stands out? The “flight attendants” giving the safety briefing (FDA mandated). The flight crew who gave up their holiday with family and friends to come to Perris. All the work that the Perris staff did to make the jumps and Boogie a success. Talking to Ben and Diane Conatser and just seeing / feeling their joy at making this happen. Yes, I’m looking forward to doing this again without waiting another 17 years. BSBD

aviation related participants may not live as long a "normal" people.