| If you find exciting the new idea you and your | | | | Thus, inspect the company's parachutes and make |
| friends shared late one afternoon of getting together | | | | sure you check their materials for any problems or |
| over the following weekend to try parachuting, the | | | | malfunctions. In fact, parachutes can malfunction in |
| hobby of jumping off a moving training airplane while | | | | several ways. Malfunctions can range from minor |
| wearing a parachute, you better read the following | | | | problems that can be corrected in-flight and still land |
| tips, as your and your friends' safety literally depend | | | | safely, to catastrophic malfunctions that will require |
| on pulling the right type of cord at the right time. | | | | the unlucky fellow to cut away the main parachute |
| Begin by researching the facilities at your area that | | | | using a modern 3-ring release system and the |
| offer these kind of extreme sports adventures and | | | | reserve parachute to be deployed. Most skydivers |
| then speak -in person- with the trainer who has to | | | | are also equipped with small barometric computers |
| be an experienced and professional skydiver. You | | | | known as an Automatic Activation Device (AAD) |
| should be able to tour the facilities, ask for other | | | | that will automatically deploy the reserve parachute in |
| people's reviews, request their authorization and | | | | case of emergency. Specifically, if a skydiver does |
| certification documents, and generally learn through | | | | not deploy the main parachute to reduce his rate of |
| observation before putting your money, your time | | | | descent by a preset altitude, the AAD device "reads" |
| and your life at the hands of someone not | | | | the malfunction and automatically releases the |
| adequately trained to lead you back to safety once | | | | reserve parachute. |
| you jump off a moving airplane. | | | | If you are concerned whether or not this will happen |
| Second, you have to inspect the gear you will be | | | | when you are going to be out there, statistical |
| wearing and using. By gear here we mean the | | | | reports estimate that approximately one in a |
| garment you should be dressed with, and most | | | | thousand main parachutes experience some kind of |
| importantly, the parachute your life will depend on. In | | | | opening malfunction and must be cut away; although |
| order for a parachute to be of good quality and | | | | some skydivers have on their records many |
| ready-to-use, it had to be carefully folded, or | | | | thousands of jumps and never had to cut away their |
| "packed" to ensure that it will open reliably. In the U.S. | | | | parachute. But, most accidents and fatalities in |
| and many developed countries, emergency and | | | | skydiving occur under a fully functional main |
| reserve parachutes are packed by "riggers" who | | | | parachute and are due to turbulence or inexperience. |
| must be trained and certified according to legal | | | | Thus, ask, listen, and essentially learn as much as you |
| standards. Paratroops and sport skydivers are always | | | | can from your skydiving trainer before taking off and |
| trained to pack their own primary "main" parachutes. | | | | ultimately jumping off the plane. |