Napalm Boy's New Writeups

Parachute malfunctions (idea)

2004-09-10T16:42:58Z

Once you've decided to go throwing yourself out of airplanes, it's important to know about what kind of things could go wrong when you deploy your life-saving device. Knowing the exact name of a malfunction is usually not important when you're actually having it: who cares about the difference between a slider up snivel and a slider up spin? Not you, if you're under either of them, since there's a universal fix for almost any problem. However, understanding the different types of malfunctions you can encounter can help one react appropriately to malfunctions when they happen, and also help to avoid them.

Parachute malfunctions are generally classified into three types: Total malfunctions, major partial malfunctions, and minor partial malfunctions. Each is either high-speed or low-speed. Each one also fails one of the 4 S's, so when you have a parachute malfunction, it's not always necessary to…

Recognizing parachute malfunctions (idea)

2004-09-08T04:33:43Z

There you are, at about 4,000 feet AGL, falling at a good 120 miles per hour at the planet we call home, and it's time to deploy your parachute. You arch for stability, put your legs out slightly, reach with your left hand as you move your right down to the hackey on your pilot chute, and throw it. Nice job. Count to five while looking over your shoulder at the nicely-inflating parach...Wait. That doesn't look right at all.

How to recognize a parachute malfunction

The first step in saving your life on the event of a parachute malfunction is recognizing that there's a problem. A malfunction as far as parachutes are concerned means anything that would keep you from landing safely. Unfortunately, parachutes are complex and the number of things that could cause you to be unable to land are numerous. Luckily, an easy-to-follow…

Advanced Freefall (idea)

2004-09-03T22:40:40Z

Accelerated Freefall (AFF), along with its sister program, Advanced Freefall Program (AFP), is a leading methodology for learning (or teaching others) how to skydive safely. The two other most popular methods for learning how to skydive are tandem skydiving and static line/Instructor-Assisted Deployment (IAD). Each method is quite different in execution, though in fact any progression of teaching will (should!) impart all necessary skills upon the student before sending them off on their own. However, AFF/AFP combines the long freefall experience and instructor safety of tandem jumps with the student-under-canopy experience of static-line jumps while giving the student more directly responsibility for his or her own safety and progression. It is generally regarded that either program teaches the necessary skills to jump safely.

Disclaimer: Specifics of the AFF/AFP programs are, of course, highly dependent upon the (USPA-certified) instructors! Despite…

freefall (thing)

2004-08-03T23:39:42Z

Freefall is a scientific term for any body of mass currently in a state such that the only force acting upon it is the force of gravity. It is also popularly used as a skydiving term, meaning the time between exiting an aircraft and deploying a parachute. Additionally, in at least one instance that I know of, it is the name of an attraction at an amusement park.

Because we do not feel the force of gravity directly, freefall is the only time we can feel as if there are no external forces acting on us whatsoever. At all other times when we are upon the surface of the earth, something (usually the ground, or perhaps a chair) is pushing up against us, holding us away from the center of the planet. Because we are constantly exposed to this upward (really outward) force, freefall can take some getting used to.

Although skydiving is a quite popular approximation, it isn't technically freefall due to the overwhelming amount of…