Author Topic: Comparing army parachute jump styles  (Read 507 times)

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Offline sneakypete

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Comparing army parachute jump styles
« on: January 19, 2021, 12:43:35 am »
First up we have the conventional US Army parachute jump.



Next we have a Special Forces Scuba Committee jump.




Who do YOU think is having the most fun?
« Last Edit: January 19, 2021, 12:46:32 am by sneakypete »
Anyone who isn't paranoid in 2021 just isn't thinking clearly!

BassWrangler

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Re: Comparing army parachute jump styles
« Reply #1 on: January 19, 2021, 01:46:30 am »
First up we have the conventional US Army parachute jump.



Next we have a Special Forces Scuba Committee jump.




Who do YOU think is having the most fun?

LOL!

Were you Airborne, @sneakypete ?

I used to work with this guy who was an avid skydiver. Seems like every other weekhe would come in with some "brush with death" story, usually about another skydiver, but occasionally him. We all used to joke about "Barker's 'brush with death' stories.

The only one that sticks in my mind after all these years is this one. He was doing a jump, but upon exiting the aircraft whacked his head on something and knocked himself unconscious. Fortunately, a few weeks prior he had added some device that automatically pulls the rip cord if you fall below some set altitude. He said the shock of the chute opening woke him up, and he was lucky enough to be over an area where a somewhat normal landing was possible.

Offline sneakypete

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Re: Comparing army parachute jump styles
« Reply #2 on: January 19, 2021, 01:55:24 am »
Quote from: BassWrangler link=topic=426096.msg2365408#msg236540bass8 date=1611020790
LOL!

Were you Airborne, @sneakypete

@BassWrangler

Yup! It was a basic requirement to be in Special Forces. I was NOT on any Scuba teams,though. Swimming in the ocean scares the hell out of me. Too many angles to be attacked from.



Quote
I used to work with this guy who was an avid skydiver. Seems like every other weekhe would come in with some "brush with death" story, usually about another skydiver, but occasionally him. We all used to joke about "Barker's 'brush with death' stories.

I never once volunteered for a jump. Mostly because the freaking army insisted on jumping after normal duty hours,and by the time you spent a few hours flying around so the USAF guys could earn their flight pay,jumped,gathered up your chute,loaded on the truck,and drove back to Bragg to turn all the stuff in,all your normal off-duty time had been shot.

Despite that,IIRC,I had 58 jumps when I got out,but this was after 7 years. I was a career soldier whose career was destroyed by Agent Orange in VN.

The only one that sticks in my mind after all these years is this one. He was doing a jump, but upon exiting the aircraft whacked his head on something and knocked himself unconscious. Fortunately, a few weeks prior he had added some device that automatically pulls the rip cord if you fall below some set altitude. He said the shock of the chute opening woke him up, and he was lucky enough to be over an area where a somewhat normal landing was possible.

Yeah,those altimeters are pretty much standard for HALO jumps.  All the thin air and all of it freezing cold makes it pretty dangerous. You MUST pay attention if you are doing that sort of thing for a living.
Anyone who isn't paranoid in 2021 just isn't thinking clearly!

BassWrangler

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Re: Comparing army parachute jump styles
« Reply #3 on: January 19, 2021, 02:09:12 am »
I never once volunteered for a jump. Mostly because the freaking army insisted on jumping after normal duty hours,and by the time you spent a few hours flying around so the USAF guys could earn their flight pay,jumped,gathered up your chute,loaded on the truck,and drove back to Bragg to turn all the stuff in,all your normal off-duty time had been shot.

Despite that,IIRC,I had 58 jumps when I got out,but this was after 7 years. I was a career soldier whose career was destroyed by Agent Orange in VN.

The only one that sticks in my mind after all these years is this one. He was doing a jump, but upon exiting the aircraft whacked his head on something and knocked himself unconscious. Fortunately, a few weeks prior he had added some device that automatically pulls the rip cord if you fall below some set altitude. He said the shock of the chute opening woke him up, and he was lucky enough to be over an area where a somewhat normal landing was possible.


Yeah,those altimeters are pretty much standard for HALO jumps.  All the thin air and all of it freezing cold makes it pretty dangerous. You MUST pay attention if you are doing that sort of thing for a living.

Ocean is kind of a scary place on its own, even without the additional threat of combat. My wife and I did a night dive one time. There was a strong current, and we drifted far enough away not to be able to see the strobe that the dive boat had in the water. So we surfaced so we could relocate the boat. Once that was done, we swam back towards the boat. My wife had her head above water, but I kept mine mostly just under the surface. We swam right through a big "school" of barracuda. As we would get close, they would move apart to let us pass. So no issues, but they are a creepy and somewhat scary looking fish up close. They have a few teeth that protrude out the front. I didn't say anything to my wife until we were back in the boat. Didn't want her to worry about it.

Offline sneakypete

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Re: Comparing army parachute jump styles
« Reply #4 on: January 19, 2021, 02:14:13 am »
Ocean is kind of a scary place on its own, even without the additional threat of combat. My wife and I did a night dive one time. There was a strong current, and we drifted far enough away not to be able to see the strobe that the dive boat had in the water. So we surfaced so we could relocate the boat. Once that was done, we swam back towards the boat. My wife had her head above water, but I kept mine mostly just under the surface. We swam right through a big "school" of barracuda. As we would get close, they would move apart to let us pass. So no issues, but they are a creepy and somewhat scary looking fish up close. They have a few teeth that protrude out the front. I didn't say anything to my wife until we were back in the boat. Didn't want her to worry about it.

@BassWrangler

I will never understand why everyone isn't terrified of swimming in the ocean. I can only guess they are just not thinking clearly.
Anyone who isn't paranoid in 2021 just isn't thinking clearly!

BassWrangler

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Re: Comparing army parachute jump styles
« Reply #5 on: January 19, 2021, 02:15:37 am »
@BassWrangler

I will never understand why everyone isn't terrified of swimming in the ocean. I can only guess they are just not thinking clearly.

Yes. Especially those folks that live in areas with lots of sharks - Australia, for example.

Offline Elderberry

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Re: Comparing army parachute jump styles
« Reply #6 on: January 19, 2021, 03:20:33 am »
We have a place on the banks of the Trinity River. After a summer day of working I went down and just let the river's current take me down stream. As I was drifting along a gar about 6 feet long surfaced right next me to eyeball me.

In the gulf of Mexico, I just dread when a wave comes in and wraps me with seaweed. That really gives me the heebie-jeebies. And I've been out to sea and as far as you could see in any direction were Portuguese man o' war. Not the time to fall overboard. A friend had completed a dive. He had surfaced and swam to the boat. He got a hand on the ladder as a wave came and put a man o'war right on his hand. He jerked back and sank as the tentacles wrapped all around him.