On his tenth wingsuit jump, this jumper was getting ready to do a two-way. As his partner got up, he felt the weight shift on his back and asked his buddy to take a look. Fortunately, the second jumper was already behind him because a second later, as he checked out the back of his friend's container, the deployment bag plopped right into his arms! The jumpers quickly told the pilot what had happened and communicated that one jumper was still going to exit while the second would ride down with the plane.
One issue with wingsuits is that they make moving around the aircraft a bit awkward and wingsuit pilots often end up having a bit more difficulty getting comfortable for the ride to altitude. Here, we were told that the jumper was leaning against the side of the plane and believes that he may have rubbed the back of his container against one of the nozzles used to provide oxygen for high-altitude jumps. That rub may have resulted in popping the closing pin on his container.
The jumpers noted that the wingsuit pilot’s deployment bag “was pretty odd, it had a slippery construction and was too large for his container.” We can’t say much about oddities or material choices, but using a deployment bag that is too large for a container can make a pack job difficult to close and can result in either a hard pull or — if the container wasn’t closed properly and the pin wasn’t all the way in — easier to pop.
When getting onto the aircraft, riding to altitude, getting up to check your gear, or preparing to exit, it’s important to always maintain awareness of how your container may be rubbing against various surfaces of the plane. Doing so can ensure that you notice and avoid obvious snag points.
Every time we get a video where someone tells us about a known gear issue, we shake our heads a little. If you know your gear isn’t properly sized, don’t use it! Skydiving is an inherently dangerous sport and the gear we use is designed precisely and is supposed to be used within specific parameters set by the manufacturer to lower the dangers as much as possible.
Before the cameraman decides to exit, the aircraft pilot asks these jumpers if they are both going to fly the plane down. This brings up an interesting point. By exiting the aircraft, the cameraman left his buddy in there by himself, with the aircraft door open, and a route by which the loose gear could sneak out. When that happens, the jumper, aircraft and pilot can all be at risk. Granted, it appeared that his friend had the deployment bag and bridle under his control, minimizing the chance that it would somehow sneak out and cause a full premature deployment. However, there is an argument that the safest possible option would have been to close the door and ride down with his friend, so we just wanted to bring it up as a discussion point.
On his tenth wingsuit jump, this jumper was getting ready to do a two-way. As his partner got up, he felt the weight shift on his back and asked his buddy to take a look. Fortunately, the second jumper was already behind him because a second later, as he checked out the back of his friend's container, the deployment bag plopped right into his arms! The jumpers quickly told the pilot what had happened and communicated that one jumper was still going to exit while the second would ride down with the plane.
One issue with wingsuits is that they make moving around the aircraft a bit awkward and wingsuit pilots often end up having a bit more difficulty getting comfortable for the ride to altitude. Here, we were told that the jumper was leaning against the side of the plane and believes that he may have rubbed the back of his container against one of the nozzles used to provide oxygen for high-altitude jumps. That rub may have resulted in popping the closing pin on his container.
The jumpers noted that the wingsuit pilot’s deployment bag “was pretty odd, it had a slippery construction and was too large for his container.” We can’t say much about oddities or material choices, but using a deployment bag that is too large for a container can make a pack job difficult to close and can result in either a hard pull or — if the container wasn’t closed properly and the pin wasn’t all the way in — easier to pop.
When getting onto the aircraft, riding to altitude, getting up to check your gear, or preparing to exit, it’s important to always maintain awareness of how your container may be rubbing against various surfaces of the plane. Doing so can ensure that you notice and avoid obvious snag points.
Every time we get a video where someone tells us about a known gear issue, we shake our heads a little. If you know your gear isn’t properly sized, don’t use it! Skydiving is an inherently dangerous sport and the gear we use is designed precisely and is supposed to be used within specific parameters set by the manufacturer to lower the dangers as much as possible.
Before the cameraman decides to exit, the aircraft pilot asks these jumpers if they are both going to fly the plane down. This brings up an interesting point. By exiting the aircraft, the cameraman left his buddy in there by himself, with the aircraft door open, and a route by which the loose gear could sneak out. When that happens, the jumper, aircraft and pilot can all be at risk. Granted, it appeared that his friend had the deployment bag and bridle under his control, minimizing the chance that it would somehow sneak out and cause a full premature deployment. However, there is an argument that the safest possible option would have been to close the door and ride down with his friend, so we just wanted to bring it up as a discussion point.
