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Safety Check In the late 1980s and 1990s, what skydivers
would accept for jump aircraft operations almost changed the face
of the sport as we know it. A rash of fatal and avoidable jump plane
crashes drew the attention of the FAA, otherwise happy to remain
occupied with aspects of aviation it better understands. From the crash investigations, the FAA
found out that jumpers didn't wear seat belts, overloaded their
airplanes and skipped required maintenance. Fuel contamination brought
down at least two turbine-engine planes, and inexperienced, poorly
trained or overconfident pilots brought about predictable results.
During a special national drop zone owner's meeting arranged through
USPA, officials from FAA Headquarters laid down an ultimatum to
the skydiving industry: Clean up your aircraft operations, or we
will. USPA responded with a successful campaign
to get jumpers to wear seat belts and manage loading. USPA also
produced an aircraft operations manual based on one developed by
then-USPA Board member Ray Ferrell for his Northern California drop
zone, and the association coordinated with the Parachute Industry
Association for a manual on fueling operations. USPA scheduled DZ
visits for key FAA Headquarters personnel to explain and demonstrate
skydiving operations to them. USPA and the FAA forged today's relationship
of trust, understanding and personal interaction during those years.
USPA has maintained it ever since through the USPA Department of
Government Relations and Group Membership. The relationship continues
to be an important asset to skydivers and the backbone of skydiving's
self-policing regulatory environment. But at the same time, the FAA stepped
up surveillance of parachuting operations, and even little out-of-the-way
drop zones got visits from FAA Flight Standards District Office
inspectors. In most cases, they disrupted busy weekend operations
at the DZ. Things changed. Many planes got much-needed
paint jobs or at least were cleaned up, and drop zones began to
feature their newer and better-maintained aircraft in their ads.
And although skydiving continued to grow, reports of wrecks and
sloppy aircraft operation diminished. So did the annoying FAA visits. Lest we forget, two recent fatal Cessna
crashes should sound an alarm to all jumpers to again notice the
planes they jump from. The whole industry's been in a slump for
a variety of reasons, and that's when corners get cut. Jumpers need
to be sure that's not happening in aircraft operations with overloaded
airplanes, skipped maintenance, less-qualified pilots, neglected
fuel management and other mistakes we've already learned from in
the past. The investigations aren't yet complete
on the two recent crashes, so no conclusions may yet be drawn. However,
writing off any airplane crash to chance or two to coincidence would
be a dangerous assumption, too. Starting this weekend, take an interest
in your drop zone's aircraft operations. Wear seat belts, one set
for each person. Walk away from overloaded aircraft. Choose DZs
that take care of their planes. Don't accept cracked control or
flight surfaces, unattended oil leaks, missing parts, planes running
out of fuel, unfiltered or poorly filtered fuel dispensers and other
evidence of cavalier aircraft operations management. Make sure that
all jumpers at the DZ, including those just getting A licenses,
get pilot briefings on weight and balance and aircraft emergencies
for that DZ. As important, refuse to fly with hot-dog
pilots who fly the plane low over the drop zone with or without
jumpers aboard, who fly down the runway on takeoff and then pull
up fast and who do zero-G maneuvers for jumper entertainment. Find
out how many hours a new pilot has and what training for jump operations
he has in that airplane. They say bad things come in threes. Let's break from superstition and prevent the next needless aircraft accident. --Kevin Gibson |