Safety Check

Leaving the Nest
It’s May, which means the start of the boogie season for skydivers north of the Mason-Dixon line. Many will jump at new drop zones for the first time, with new friends and different airplanes and maybe even new gear thrown into the mix. While change can be a good thing, too many new variables can intimidate or overwhelm less-experienced jumpers. Applying a little common sense will often make the difference between a great time jumping at a new place or an ambulance ride to a hospital in a strange town.

Wind limits usually go out the window first. All too often, skydivers seem to think they need to stick to reasonable wind limits only on an average DZ weekend. Large skydiving events experiencing strong and gusty winds have been a source of many landing accidents (and the resulting claims against USPA’s third-party liability insurance). While nobody likes to drive for hours just to sit on the ground and watch the wind sock stick straight out, crashing into a parked car or airplane during an uncontrolled landing isn’t much of a good time, either. If you are not comfortable jumping in winds more than 17 mph at your home DZ, why would you jump in 24-mph winds at a new and unfamiliar drop zone? It usually takes only one person to make the call that the winds are beyond his comfort level, and others will often gladly bump off the load with a sigh of relief that someone finally spoke up.

Boogies usually include larger airplanes and larger formations. Twenty-way hybrid dives might be pushing things a bit if your largest jump to date is a 4-way out of the local Cessna. Working toward larger and more complex formations takes time and practice. A good load organizer can usually help jumpers learn new tricks to push the envelope ever so gently.

And let’s not forget that for each of those extra bodies in freefall, there is also another parachute to contend with. If you are used to dealing with just three other parachutes in the sky on a regular basis, a CASA or Twin Otter load worth of canopies sure clutters the landing pattern. Keep your head on a swivel under canopy, and look before you turn to make sure you have clear airspace. Fly a predictable pattern, use brakes or riser input to help maintain separation from other traffic, and fly a straight-in final approach. Canopy collisions almost always result from one of two issues: lack of sufficient breakoff separation combined with an off-heading opening or two jumpers colliding just before landing. Higher breakoff altitudes and better tracking can help prevent the former; staying alert under canopy and avoiding S-turns and high-performance approaches in a crowded landing area will help prevent the latter.

It’s boogie season—good times and great skydives with friends new and old. Let’s make them happy times for everyone by using some simple common sense and sticking to the basics. After all, we have a long, hot summer ahead. —Jim Crouch

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