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Emergency Bailout Procedures Part
III
By Allen Silver
(Reprinted with
permission)
This month we conclude the
3-part series on emergency bailout. This month covers the
final, important part - the landing.
YOUR SAFE RETURN TO EARTH
In Part 2 I left you hanging, literally,
above the ground under a fully opened parachute. Take just
a moment to thank God, breathe deeply and absorb the
situation before getting back to work. There is still much
to be done before your ultimate goal of a successful
emergency bailout is completed.
Become familiar with the steering system your parachute
has. If your parachute does not have a steering system you
are basically at the mercy of the wind as to where you will
drift and how you will land. I strongly suggest having your
non-steerable parachute modified to make it steerable or
upgrading to a steerable parachute. Then have your rigger
thoroughly explain it to you.
This is like the stick in your aircraft or your car
steering wheel. Not having prior knowledge of its function
or use may cause you to hit an obstacle, such as power
lines or trees. Whatever steering you have, activate and
take a hold of it after opening and do not turn it loose
until you have landed. This would be like letting go of
your steering wheel or stick. The newer parachutes have
some form of ready-to-use-upon opening steering handles.
Others require you to steer with the rear risers and some
have a 4-line release. Whatever system you have become
familiar now. During an emergency is not the time to wonder
if you can steer your parachute.
Whatever steering system you have, only pull down one rear
riser or steering handle at a time. When you are through
turning in that direction return it to its neutral
position, but do not turn it loose. Round parachutes cannot
be flared for landing like your aircraft or a rectangular
skydiver's parachute. Pulling both rear risers or steering
handles down at the same time can cause your parachute to
lose altitude very rapidly. Remember, only one at a time.
Do not pull the front risers down on any parachute that has
four risers. This can greatly increase your rate of
descent.
To operate the steering system used on most modern
parachutes grasp the two steering handles (usually 1" wide
webbing) located above your shoulders. Some parachutes use
metal rings. Usually the handles are a contrasting color.
Your left hand grasps the left handle and the right hand
grasps the right one. If you want to turn left, pull on the
left steering handle until you've reached the desired
heading then return the handle back to its neutral
position. Do not let it go. Again, remember only pull down
one steering handle at a time. You could cause your rate of
descent to increase dramatically by pulling down both
handles at the same time. Usually pulling down on the riser
or steering handle 6-12 inches, on the side you want to
turn, is all that is needed to turn your parachute. It's
really quite simple and straight forward. However, lets say
you injured your left shoulder on exit or opening shock and
want to make a 90 degree left turn. What do you do? Simply,
make a 270 degree right turn.
The purpose of your steering system is to allow you to
maneuver your chute to the most obstacle-free area
possible. This should be away from roads where power lines
are possibly located and hopefully it will help you to face
into the wind on landing. Facing into the wind will set you
up for the slowest possible descent and landing. Also, a
steerable parachute will significantly dampen your
oscillating, further reducing your landing speed and chance
of serious injury.
Do not initiate any major turns low to the ground unless it
is to avoid a life threatening obstacle such as power
lines. Below 200 feet make only slight corrections to keep
you facing into the wind. This will help dampen oscillation
also, and prevent you from landing harder.
To better understand how your parachute works let's assume
your parachute has a forward speed of 5 mph. This speed can
never be shut off, just like on your chute. This is the
forward speed most steerable round emergency parachutes
average today. If the wind is 0 mph you will go 5 mph in
any direction you face. If the wind is 5 mph and you face
into the wind your ground speed will be reduced to 0 mph.
You will see the same landscape under you. This is the
slowest possible way you can land. If you turn and run with
the 5 mph wind you are now landing downwind at 10 mph.
Obviously, to achieve the slowest possible landing you must
face into the wind on all landings. This is the same
principle used when you land your aircraft. Now, if the
wind is 10 mph and you face into the 10 mph wind you will
be backing up at 5 mph, which is the best you can do. You
will see the ground moving out from between your feet and
away from you. If you turned and ran with the wind you
would be traveling at 15 mph and anytime you are running
with the wind or the wind is less than the forward speed of
your parachute the ground will be moving between your feet
and out the back behind you. In other words, from front to
rear. I would also like to reinforce the need for people
with poor vision to try and secure their glasses or they
may not be able to see details on the ground such as power
lines.
Okay, hopefully, you have maneuvered your canopy to a clear
landing area, have slowed your speed across the ground to
the minimum and are facing into the wind. You are now ready
to land whether you want to or not.
Press your feet and knees tightly together for better
support. Your toes should be slightly pointed to prevent
landing on your heels. Your knees should be slightly bent
and your legs tensed. Keep about the same tension as needed
to bounce up and down on the balls of your feet a couple of
inches off of the ground. Do not lock your knees. Keep your
hands on the steering system. If you do not have one, grasp
the risers above your head. Keep your elbows in and try to
look at the horizon, not down at the ground. This will
allow you to better judge your drift and to make minor
steering corrections to keep you facing into the wind or
quartering no more than about 10 degrees.
Just prior to landing, the ground will probably look as if
it's coming up fast. To minimize the possibility of injury
make sure your feet and knees are tight together and your
legs tensed. Try to absorb most of the landing on the balls
of your feet. You just survived an emergency bailout and
now is not the time to panic. A common mistake at this
critical moment is to raise your legs or keep them apart at
the moment you need their support the most. Again, remember
to press your feet and knees tightly together. At touchdown
tuck in your chin, pull your elbows in front of you to
protect them and your face and roll whichever way the chute
pulls you. This will help spread the landing forces
throughout the balls of your feet, your legs, thighs and
upper arms (shoulder area).
If you land in high winds and are being dragged on your
face you must first roll onto your back. If you have no
canopy releases you can either release your chest and leg
straps and slip out of your harness or grab one or two
lines next to each other and reel them in (hand over hand)
until the canopy collapses. If you use the first method
release the chest strap first. If you release the leg
straps first the harness and chest strap may slip up under
your chin and choke you. When you reel your canopy in hand
over hand you must hold onto the lines tightly to prevent
friction burns to your hands. Keeping a tight hold of these
lines, quickly get out of the harness in case a gust of
wind reinflates it. Grabbing more than two lines next to
each other is not necessary and it makes it very difficult
to reel them in, because of the pressure. If you are able
to get up on your feet after landing and are still in the
harness you can collapse your parachute by running around
it, if that's necessary. Once it's collapsed gather your
chute tightly together to prevent it from reinflating. Then
get out of your harness.
Once you are on the ground and out of your parachute, the
canopy can help you be located. Spread it out in such a
manner as to attract attention from the air.
In the event of a tree or power line landing you must throw
your ripcord away prior to landing, if you haven't done so.
It can snag in a branch and will conduct electricity if it
contacts a power line. Keep your feet tight together to
prevent you from straddling a limb or wire. Just before you
land in a tree or wires fold your arms over your face to
protect it and your neck. Try to make yourself as thin as
possible. Once you stop, if not on the ground, do not move
quickly so you can evaluate how well you're hung up. If
you're high above the ground any quick movement may cause
you to fall. Be prepared, after you come to a complete stop
(and not before) to grab hold of a branch. You could
seriously injure your arms trying to grab branches before
you stop. You must first protect your face and neck. In my
opinion a power line landing should be avoided at all costs
even it means making a low turn and landing downwind.
Hitting the ground hard and risking serious injury is still
preferable to electrocution as far as I'm concerned.
In the event of a water landing prepare for a regular
landing because the water may not be very deep. I suggest
you do not undo any straps until your feet touch the water.
Some manufacturers say undoing the chest strap is all
right. Check with the manual or the manufacturer of your
parachute for their recommendations. Over the water your
depth perception is off and releasing the chest strap may
cause you to fall out of your harness prematurely. If you
undo your chest strap (never leg straps) you must cross
your arms in front of the harness to prevent falling
forward. This prevents you from steering properly, which is
another reason I don't
recommend it.
When you enter the water hold your breath. You may go under
the water. Quickly undo your chest and leg straps and swim
away from your parachute to avoid entanglements. Don't
panic, this will cause fatigue. If you are under the
canopy, carefully follow a seam to the edge and swim free.
If you are being dragged in the water collapse your canopy
as you would for a land jump. Once you are out of the
harness immediately swim away from the canopy and
lines.
Become totally familiar with getting your harness off
without looking. You might want to practice while lying on
your back, as if being dragged. Parachutes differ, so you
must understand thoroughly how the snaps or friction
adapters work on each parachute you may wear.
If you fly over water often, flotation gear should be worn.
Generally it is best if it is worn under the parachute
harness so you can remove the harness and not remove the
flotation gear in the process. Become very familiar with
any flotation equipment you wear because if it's the
inflatable type it probably cannot be safely inflated under
the parachute harness without damaging the flotation device
or crushing you.
I suggest carrying a small unbreakable signaling mirror.
This can be seen for miles. A whistle is also handy when
someone is trying to find you. The noise carries further
than your voice. Like the Boy Scouts, "Be Prepared". Some
parachutes systems have a spot for some emergency
equipment, but if you lose your harness/container (as in a
water landing) it will do you no good. I recommend that you
carry them on you in a flight suit pocket or in one of
those small waist packs.
Even though it may seem as if I've given you everything you
may ever need to know about emergency bailout procedures
over this three part series, that is not at all true. This
has been a very basic guideline and is in no way intended
as a substitute for jump training, survival training or
even in depth instruction from a qualified rigger. You may
even want to make a parachute jump to see what it's like. I
highly recommend a tandem jump. Remember this will not be a
round parachute, but it will certainly help prepare you to
better understand what a jump is all about. This could save
you valuable time, if you ever have an emergency. Unless
you have proper jump training and actual jumps on the
rectangular parachutes a skydiver uses, a round parachute
is much more docile and forgiving for your
requirements.
My goal has been to get your attitude geared toward looking
at your parachute as a real option in the event of a major
failure. I'm amazed at how many pilots tell me they have no
intention of ever using their parachute. My reply, "I'll
bet your attitude will change real quick if your spinning
towards earth with only one wing or are on fire". And that
is not the time to decide how to bailout. It's now when you
are in total control.
I hope none of you will ever need to use this information,
but if you do, there is one last important fact you must be
aware of. After a successful bailout, it is customary to
buy your rigger a bottle of the alcoholic beverage of his
or her choice. Personally, I prefer a good bottle of
wine.
Please feel free to call or write me with any questions or
parachute needs. Ask me about a safety seminar for your
flying group. I'm here to serve and help you and look
forward to hearing from you. I can be reached at (510)
785-7070, Monday-Friday 8am-4pm (PST). Or write me at
Silver Parachute Sales & Service, P.O.Box 6092,
Hayward, CA. 94540-6092. Blue Skies....
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