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![]() "ShawnD2112" wrote in message news:AnZDc.1369$Dq1.851@newsfe6-win... Was hoping to get a bit of expertise here. I'm in the market for an emergency bailout chute for flying in my Pitts S-1D. The top US contenders seem to be National and Softie but with no experience in the field, and parachutes not exactly being the kind of object you can try on for size in the shop, I don't really know what to look for and what to avoid. I'd appreciate any tips anyone out there could provide. Are there any European models that anyone has any experience with? Obviously comfort and space in the cockpit are major considerations. Thanks! Shawn Shawn; I take it you're into negative g these days, or at least thinking about that side of the envelope :-) I'd suggest the Mini Softie. You can get it with a very comfortable aerobatic harness which doesn't kill you with the metalwork if you're working the airplane negative. It should fit into the D cockpit ok unless you've been hanging out at Mac Donald's too much lately or into that damn "bloomin onion" thing I ate the other night at the Outback!! Man, you should have seen THAT thing!!!! :-)) I think they just dip it into a bucket of LDL Cholesterol and hand it to you!! :-)) Dudley |
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![]() "Dudley Henriques" wrote in message ink.net... Forgot to tell you. Whatever you buy, try it on first and make at least one flight in it with the Pitts. Don't baby the flight either. Take it out sustained both ways and see how it feels, especially inverted. Do a half roll, stabilize there and just hang for a bit and feel it on your back. You'll know if it's going to do the job for you. Dudley |
#3
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Dudley,
Sound advice. Negative stuff isn't the reason I've decided to get a chute. I've done a bit of negative but I'm staying away from any of the real stuff until I get some inverted spin training. No, what's really made me decide were two things. One is that I've started doing some basic formation work with a mate. While we're taking it slow and investing in some training, there's always the risk of something going wrong and someone's airplane touching someone else's. It's that scenario that makes a chute seem like a good idea. I've also got a bit of a phobia about fire in the cockpit. The other thing was a long term re-evaluation of the risks. When I first started flying the Pitts, I thought about a chute but initially ruled it out (they're not required for aerobatics in the UK, and, in fact, a lot of guys don't wear them). I ruled it out because I figured that to open the canopy, exit the aircraft, deploy the chute, and get one swing in before hitting the ground, I'd need to be about 2,000 feet up. Well, when competing andpracticing, I only ever got up that high at the tops of aerobatic maneuvers, not during the bulk of my flying. So, I figured, if I rarely fly high enough for a chute to work, what are the chances of being able to get that altitude if I needed it? Pretty slim, I reckoned, so I thought a chute was a comfort factor more than a real safety option. Now, that all said, I'd feel like a real tit if I found myself with an unflyable airplane and no means to get out of it. So screw all that misguided analysis above, I'm getting a bailout chute. I guess this is a case of experience and age teaching one a bit of wisdom? It seems silly to deny myself an option based on some flawed logic applied in the hangar. Thanks for the tip on the Softie. I'm going to give them a call tonight. Cheers, Shawn "Dudley Henriques" wrote in message link.net... "Dudley Henriques" wrote in message ink.net... Forgot to tell you. Whatever you buy, try it on first and make at least one flight in it with the Pitts. Don't baby the flight either. Take it out sustained both ways and see how it feels, especially inverted. Do a half roll, stabilize there and just hang for a bit and feel it on your back. You'll know if it's going to do the job for you. Dudley |
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I think that practicing aerobatics below 2000' is not really a good idea. A
good friend of mine got killed when he messed up a hammerhead that he started at 1500'. When I practice new maneuvers, I want to be at 4000' to 5000', higher if they are spins. As far as the minimum altitude for chute opening is concerned, I believe that you can get your chute open fromless than 1000', how much less depends on the circumstances. Guenther ---------------------------------------------------- Guenther Eichhorn | Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory, Cambridge, MA CPL,ASMELS,Glider,LBH,IA,CFI | Pitts S-2A: N1GE DC-3 type rating | Flying is the Pitts http://acro.harvard.edu/ACRO In article , "ShawnD2112" writes: Dudley, Sound advice. Negative stuff isn't the reason I've decided to get a chute. I've done a bit of negative but I'm staying away from any of the real stuff until I get some inverted spin training. No, what's really made me decide were two things. One is that I've started doing some basic formation work with a mate. While we're taking it slow and investing in some training, there's always the risk of something going wrong and someone's airplane touching someone else's. It's that scenario that makes a chute seem like a good idea. I've also got a bit of a phobia about fire in the cockpit. The other thing was a long term re-evaluation of the risks. When I first started flying the Pitts, I thought about a chute but initially ruled it out (they're not required for aerobatics in the UK, and, in fact, a lot of guys don't wear them). I ruled it out because I figured that to open the canopy, exit the aircraft, deploy the chute, and get one swing in before hitting the ground, I'd need to be about 2,000 feet up. Well, when competing andpracticing, I only ever got up that high at the tops of aerobatic maneuvers, not during the bulk of my flying. So, I figured, if I rarely fly high enough for a chute to work, what are the chances of being able to get that altitude if I needed it? Pretty slim, I reckoned, so I thought a chute was a comfort factor more than a real safety option. Now, that all said, I'd feel like a real tit if I found myself with an unflyable airplane and no means to get out of it. So screw all that misguided analysis above, I'm getting a bailout chute. I guess this is a case of experience and age teaching one a bit of wisdom? It seems silly to deny myself an option based on some flawed logic applied in the hangar. Thanks for the tip on the Softie. I'm going to give them a call tonight. Cheers, Shawn "Dudley Henriques" wrote in message hlink.net... "Dudley Henriques" wrote in message ink.net... Forgot to tell you. Whatever you buy, try it on first and make at least one flight in it with the Pitts. Don't baby the flight either. Take it out sustained both ways and see how it feels, especially inverted. Do a half roll, stabilize there and just hang for a bit and feel it on your back. You'll know if it's going to do the job for you. Dudley |
#5
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Guenther,
Sorry to hear about your friend, and I appreciate where your advice is coming from. I agree with you on practicing new maneuvers but when you're practicing for a competition you have to be able to get your positioning right. Competition floor in the UK ast Standard level is 1000 ft. Shawn "Guenther Eichhorn" wrote in message ... I think that practicing aerobatics below 2000' is not really a good idea. A good friend of mine got killed when he messed up a hammerhead that he started at 1500'. When I practice new maneuvers, I want to be at 4000' to 5000', higher if they are spins. As far as the minimum altitude for chute opening is concerned, I believe that you can get your chute open fromless than 1000', how much less depends on the circumstances. Guenther ---------------------------------------------------- Guenther Eichhorn | Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory, Cambridge, MA CPL,ASMELS,Glider,LBH,IA,CFI | Pitts S-2A: N1GE DC-3 type rating | Flying is the Pitts http://acro.harvard.edu/ACRO In article , "ShawnD2112" writes: Dudley, Sound advice. Negative stuff isn't the reason I've decided to get a chute. I've done a bit of negative but I'm staying away from any of the real stuff until I get some inverted spin training. No, what's really made me decide were two things. One is that I've started doing some basic formation work with a mate. While we're taking it slow and investing in some training, there's always the risk of something going wrong and someone's airplane touching someone else's. It's that scenario that makes a chute seem like a good idea. I've also got a bit of a phobia about fire in the cockpit. The other thing was a long term re-evaluation of the risks. When I first started flying the Pitts, I thought about a chute but initially ruled it out (they're not required for aerobatics in the UK, and, in fact, a lot of guys don't wear them). I ruled it out because I figured that to open the canopy, exit the aircraft, deploy the chute, and get one swing in before hitting the ground, I'd need to be about 2,000 feet up. Well, when competing andpracticing, I only ever got up that high at the tops of aerobatic maneuvers, not during the bulk of my flying. So, I figured, if I rarely fly high enough for a chute to work, what are the chances of being able to get that altitude if I needed it? Pretty slim, I reckoned, so I thought a chute was a comfort factor more than a real safety option. Now, that all said, I'd feel like a real tit if I found myself with an unflyable airplane and no means to get out of it. So screw all that misguided analysis above, I'm getting a bailout chute. I guess this is a case of experience and age teaching one a bit of wisdom? It seems silly to deny myself an option based on some flawed logic applied in the hangar. Thanks for the tip on the Softie. I'm going to give them a call tonight. Cheers, Shawn "Dudley Henriques" wrote in message hlink.net... "Dudley Henriques" wrote in message ink.net... Forgot to tell you. Whatever you buy, try it on first and make at least one flight in it with the Pitts. Don't baby the flight either. Take it out sustained both ways and see how it feels, especially inverted. Do a half roll, stabilize there and just hang for a bit and feel it on your back. You'll know if it's going to do the job for you. Dudley |
#6
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Yes, of course for a competition you practice lower (even though I personally still don't go
below 2000', because of noise concerns as much as because of safety concernsS). From your post I assumed that you were new to the Pitts (you said " When I first started flying the Pitts... "), which would mean that the maneuvers are new for you. Guenther In article , "ShawnD2112" writes: Guenther, Sorry to hear about your friend, and I appreciate where your advice is coming from. I agree with you on practicing new maneuvers but when you're practicing for a competition you have to be able to get your positioning right. Competition floor in the UK ast Standard level is 1000 ft. Shawn "Guenther Eichhorn" wrote in message ... I think that practicing aerobatics below 2000' is not really a good idea. A good friend of mine got killed when he messed up a hammerhead that he started at 1500'. When I practice new maneuvers, I want to be at 4000' to 5000', higher if they are spins. As far as the minimum altitude for chute opening is concerned, I believe that you can get your chute open fromless than 1000', how much less depends on the circumstances. Guenther ---------------------------------------------------- Guenther Eichhorn | Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory, Cambridge, MA CPL,ASMELS,Glider,LBH,IA,CFI | Pitts S-2A: N1GE DC-3 type rating | Flying is the Pitts http://acro.harvard.edu/ACRO In article , "ShawnD2112" writes: Dudley, Sound advice. Negative stuff isn't the reason I've decided to get a chute. I've done a bit of negative but I'm staying away from any of the real stuff until I get some inverted spin training. No, what's really made me decide were two things. One is that I've started doing some basic formation work with a mate. While we're taking it slow and investing in some training, there's always the risk of something going wrong and someone's airplane touching someone else's. It's that scenario that makes a chute seem like a good idea. I've also got a bit of a phobia about fire in the cockpit. The other thing was a long term re-evaluation of the risks. When I first started flying the Pitts, I thought about a chute but initially ruled it out (they're not required for aerobatics in the UK, and, in fact, a lot of guys don't wear them). I ruled it out because I figured that to open the canopy, exit the aircraft, deploy the chute, and get one swing in before hitting the ground, I'd need to be about 2,000 feet up. Well, when competing andpracticing, I only ever got up that high at the tops of aerobatic maneuvers, not during the bulk of my flying. So, I figured, if I rarely fly high enough for a chute to work, what are the chances of being able to get that altitude if I needed it? Pretty slim, I reckoned, so I thought a chute was a comfort factor more than a real safety option. Now, that all said, I'd feel like a real tit if I found myself with an unflyable airplane and no means to get out of it. So screw all that misguided analysis above, I'm getting a bailout chute. I guess this is a case of experience and age teaching one a bit of wisdom? It seems silly to deny myself an option based on some flawed logic applied in the hangar. Thanks for the tip on the Softie. I'm going to give them a call tonight. Cheers, Shawn "Dudley Henriques" wrote in message hlink.net... "Dudley Henriques" wrote in message ink.net... Forgot to tell you. Whatever you buy, try it on first and make at least one flight in it with the Pitts. Don't baby the flight either. Take it out sustained both ways and see how it feels, especially inverted. Do a half roll, stabilize there and just hang for a bit and feel it on your back. You'll know if it's going to do the job for you. Dudley |
#7
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About the negative stuff; the only reason I mentioned it was for you to
make sure whatever harness you bought was comfortable on the negative side of things. The aerobatic harness is usually much more comfortable in this respect. One thing to keep in mind if you're going to be doing formation in a Pitts, and unfortunately it's not a very pleasant thought :-) Remember, if you DO make hard contact and have a wing failure, the flying wires will probably hold on the top wing and the wing will literally beat you to death before you can get out....so don't get too close!! :-)) Dudley "ShawnD2112" wrote in message ... Dudley, Sound advice. Negative stuff isn't the reason I've decided to get a chute. I've done a bit of negative but I'm staying away from any of the real stuff until I get some inverted spin training. No, what's really made me decide were two things. One is that I've started doing some basic formation work with a mate. While we're taking it slow and investing in some training, there's always the risk of something going wrong and someone's airplane touching someone else's. It's that scenario that makes a chute seem like a good idea. I've also got a bit of a phobia about fire in the cockpit. The other thing was a long term re-evaluation of the risks. When I first started flying the Pitts, I thought about a chute but initially ruled it out (they're not required for aerobatics in the UK, and, in fact, a lot of guys don't wear them). I ruled it out because I figured that to open the canopy, exit the aircraft, deploy the chute, and get one swing in before hitting the ground, I'd need to be about 2,000 feet up. Well, when competing andpracticing, I only ever got up that high at the tops of aerobatic maneuvers, not during the bulk of my flying. So, I figured, if I rarely fly high enough for a chute to work, what are the chances of being able to get that altitude if I needed it? Pretty slim, I reckoned, so I thought a chute was a comfort factor more than a real safety option. Now, that all said, I'd feel like a real tit if I found myself with an unflyable airplane and no means to get out of it. So screw all that misguided analysis above, I'm getting a bailout chute. I guess this is a case of experience and age teaching one a bit of wisdom? It seems silly to deny myself an option based on some flawed logic applied in the hangar. Thanks for the tip on the Softie. I'm going to give them a call tonight. Cheers, Shawn "Dudley Henriques" wrote in message link.net... "Dudley Henriques" wrote in message ink.net... Forgot to tell you. Whatever you buy, try it on first and make at least one flight in it with the Pitts. Don't baby the flight either. Take it out sustained both ways and see how it feels, especially inverted. Do a half roll, stabilize there and just hang for a bit and feel it on your back. You'll know if it's going to do the job for you. Dudley |
#8
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Cheers, Dudley. As if I didn't have enough things to worry about!!
Spent Sunday briefing and doing a small bit of formation work with a former Red Arrow pilot. If I get hit by a bus tomorrow, as least my log book will show that I flew in formation with a former Red Arrow! I couldn't get the grin off my face while it was happening. I think I'm going to enjoy working with this guy! We went through a lengthy brief down at the local pub (where all briefings should be held, if you ask me - very civilized approach to flying, that!) where we discussed my mate's and my intentions, background, and set out our stall together. We put together a basic framework of our work then went into the details of safe formation flying to include communications, formation placement, joinup and break basics, essentially all the safety and practical issues associated with the business. Thoroughly enjoyed it and it was a lot to take in. Some of it we knew, most of it we didn't and even the stuff we knew we weren't entirely sure how to apply. Talking to a guy who does it for a living (he still flies Jags) was an eye-opening and extremely motivating experience. On the parachute side, have decided on a Softie after talking to thier man, Jim, for quite a while last week. He's going to make up a seat pack rig for me with an aerobatic harness, based on your advice about the location of the hardware (thanks for that, by the way) It's also become time to replace the surplus bag I've been wearing for 3 years. I've looked at Flightsuits in California but are there any other shops where guys in the community tend to go for good quality and good prices? Any tips, as with the parachute advice, greatly appreciated! Hope you had a good 4th weekend! Cheers, Shawn "Dudley Henriques" wrote in message ink.net... About the negative stuff; the only reason I mentioned it was for you to make sure whatever harness you bought was comfortable on the negative side of things. The aerobatic harness is usually much more comfortable in this respect. One thing to keep in mind if you're going to be doing formation in a Pitts, and unfortunately it's not a very pleasant thought :-) Remember, if you DO make hard contact and have a wing failure, the flying wires will probably hold on the top wing and the wing will literally beat you to death before you can get out....so don't get too close!! :-)) Dudley "ShawnD2112" wrote in message ... Dudley, Sound advice. Negative stuff isn't the reason I've decided to get a chute. I've done a bit of negative but I'm staying away from any of the real stuff until I get some inverted spin training. No, what's really made me decide were two things. One is that I've started doing some basic formation work with a mate. While we're taking it slow and investing in some training, there's always the risk of something going wrong and someone's airplane touching someone else's. It's that scenario that makes a chute seem like a good idea. I've also got a bit of a phobia about fire in the cockpit. The other thing was a long term re-evaluation of the risks. When I first started flying the Pitts, I thought about a chute but initially ruled it out (they're not required for aerobatics in the UK, and, in fact, a lot of guys don't wear them). I ruled it out because I figured that to open the canopy, exit the aircraft, deploy the chute, and get one swing in before hitting the ground, I'd need to be about 2,000 feet up. Well, when competing andpracticing, I only ever got up that high at the tops of aerobatic maneuvers, not during the bulk of my flying. So, I figured, if I rarely fly high enough for a chute to work, what are the chances of being able to get that altitude if I needed it? Pretty slim, I reckoned, so I thought a chute was a comfort factor more than a real safety option. Now, that all said, I'd feel like a real tit if I found myself with an unflyable airplane and no means to get out of it. So screw all that misguided analysis above, I'm getting a bailout chute. I guess this is a case of experience and age teaching one a bit of wisdom? It seems silly to deny myself an option based on some flawed logic applied in the hangar. Thanks for the tip on the Softie. I'm going to give them a call tonight. Cheers, Shawn "Dudley Henriques" wrote in message link.net... "Dudley Henriques" wrote in message ink.net... Forgot to tell you. Whatever you buy, try it on first and make at least one flight in it with the Pitts. Don't baby the flight either. Take it out sustained both ways and see how it feels, especially inverted. Do a half roll, stabilize there and just hang for a bit and feel it on your back. You'll know if it's going to do the job for you. Dudley |
#9
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![]() "ShawnD2112" wrote in message ... Cheers, Dudley. As if I didn't have enough things to worry about!! Spent Sunday briefing and doing a small bit of formation work with a former Red Arrow pilot. If I get hit by a bus tomorrow, as least my log book will show that I flew in formation with a former Red Arrow! I couldn't get the grin off my face while it was happening. I think I'm going to enjoy working with this guy! We went through a lengthy brief down at the local pub (where all briefings should be held, if you ask me - very civilized approach to flying, that!) where we discussed my mate's and my intentions, background, and set out our stall together. We put together a basic framework of our work then went into the details of safe formation flying to include communications, formation placement, joinup and break basics, essentially all the safety and practical issues associated with the business. Thoroughly enjoyed it and it was a lot to take in. Some of it we knew, most of it we didn't and even the stuff we knew we weren't entirely sure how to apply. Talking to a guy who does it for a living (he still flies Jags) was an eye-opening and extremely motivating experience. On the parachute side, have decided on a Softie after talking to thier man, Jim, for quite a while last week. He's going to make up a seat pack rig for me with an aerobatic harness, based on your advice about the location of the hardware (thanks for that, by the way) It's also become time to replace the surplus bag I've been wearing for 3 years. I've looked at Flightsuits in California but are there any other shops where guys in the community tend to go for good quality and good prices? Any tips, as with the parachute advice, greatly appreciated! Hope you had a good 4th weekend! Cheers, Shawn "Dudley Henriques" wrote in message ink.net... About the negative stuff; the only reason I mentioned it was for you to make sure whatever harness you bought was comfortable on the negative side of things. The aerobatic harness is usually much more comfortable in this respect. One thing to keep in mind if you're going to be doing formation in a Pitts, and unfortunately it's not a very pleasant thought :-) Remember, if you DO make hard contact and have a wing failure, the flying wires will probably hold on the top wing and the wing will literally beat you to death before you can get out....so don't get too close!! :-)) Dudley "ShawnD2112" wrote in message ... Dudley, Sound advice. Negative stuff isn't the reason I've decided to get a chute. I've done a bit of negative but I'm staying away from any of the real stuff until I get some inverted spin training. No, what's really made me decide were two things. One is that I've started doing some basic formation work with a mate. While we're taking it slow and investing in some training, there's always the risk of something going wrong and someone's airplane touching someone else's. It's that scenario that makes a chute seem like a good idea. I've also got a bit of a phobia about fire in the cockpit. The other thing was a long term re-evaluation of the risks. When I first started flying the Pitts, I thought about a chute but initially ruled it out (they're not required for aerobatics in the UK, and, in fact, a lot of guys don't wear them). I ruled it out because I figured that to open the canopy, exit the aircraft, deploy the chute, and get one swing in before hitting the ground, I'd need to be about 2,000 feet up. Well, when competing andpracticing, I only ever got up that high at the tops of aerobatic maneuvers, not during the bulk of my flying. So, I figured, if I rarely fly high enough for a chute to work, what are the chances of being able to get that altitude if I needed it? Pretty slim, I reckoned, so I thought a chute was a comfort factor more than a real safety option. Now, that all said, I'd feel like a real tit if I found myself with an unflyable airplane and no means to get out of it. So screw all that misguided analysis above, I'm getting a bailout chute. I guess this is a case of experience and age teaching one a bit of wisdom? It seems silly to deny myself an option based on some flawed logic applied in the hangar. Thanks for the tip on the Softie. I'm going to give them a call tonight. Cheers, Shawn "Dudley Henriques" wrote in message link.net... "Dudley Henriques" wrote in message ink.net... Forgot to tell you. Whatever you buy, try it on first and make at least one flight in it with the Pitts. Don't baby the flight either. Take it out sustained both ways and see how it feels, especially inverted. Do a half roll, stabilize there and just hang for a bit and feel it on your back. You'll know if it's going to do the job for you. Dudley I thought that little "tidbit" about the flying wires would get a Grin out of you!! :-) It's true though. Getting out of a Pitts after an upper wing failure is REAL serious stuff!! Anyway, it's funny you should mention having a briefing at a pub. Believe it or not, when we were on the display circuit way back when, almost all of the pilots would get together late at night in some diner or bar somewhere and hash over programs and routine changes. I remember spending an entire all nighter one weekend at a diner in Falls Church Virginia with Art Scholl and two of the Thunderbirds. We were working on Art's inverted ribbon pickup in the Chipmunk. He wanted to make some changes and enter it from a modified tailslide. We worked it all out after eating about a dozen hamburgers washed down with copious amounts of coffee. He did it the "new way" the next afternoon. About the flight suit; you can get them made up custom, which might not be a bad idea. Be careful about the material. Nomex is an option, but you might not be as prone to a cockpit fire as I was in a P51 or a Bearcat! :-) I remember damn near roasting to death in my flight suit. All of your display flying will probably be done in the summer when it's hot as heel out on those wide open concrete ramps...not to mention cramped up in the Pitts cockpit :-) I'd opt for something "cool" in a flight suit. Where to get a good one is a toss up really. My wife made mine up for me. You might want to contact the Arrows and find out who makes theirs, or give Ray Hanna a call. Almost anyone in the business will have a handle on who's doing the custom work these days in flight suits. It's funny. I remember there was a lady in Pensacola who used to do all the sewing on the Blue Angel flightsuits for the team. Man, was SHE one busy lady!!! :-) I'm sure you can come up with something over there. As I said, the best place to get information on things like this is right inside the community itself. Don't be shy! Call um!! :-))) Dudley |
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"Hot as hell in the summer"??? You've not spent much time over here in the
UK, have you, Dudley? It briefly (and I mean for a couple of hours) got to 100 degrees F one August day last year and that was the hottest temperature ever recorded in the UK. The Brits didn't know what to do with themselves in the heat! It rarely gets much above 85 even in the dead of summer so that kind of overheating issue isn't really a problem here. I've currently got a lightweight Nomex surplus USAF suit, and I'd like to duplicate it, but it desert sand to match my airplane. While fire may not be as great a threat in the Pitts, that fuel tank sitting right over your legs tends to put thoughts into one's head. Good tip about asking the community. Most guys around here seem to wear surplus RAF suits. Anyway, off to work in glorious sunshine. It's a real effort not to call in sick and go fly today! Shawn "Dudley Henriques" wrote in message nk.net... "ShawnD2112" wrote in message ... Cheers, Dudley. As if I didn't have enough things to worry about!! Spent Sunday briefing and doing a small bit of formation work with a former Red Arrow pilot. If I get hit by a bus tomorrow, as least my log book will show that I flew in formation with a former Red Arrow! I couldn't get the grin off my face while it was happening. I think I'm going to enjoy working with this guy! We went through a lengthy brief down at the local pub (where all briefings should be held, if you ask me - very civilized approach to flying, that!) where we discussed my mate's and my intentions, background, and set out our stall together. We put together a basic framework of our work then went into the details of safe formation flying to include communications, formation placement, joinup and break basics, essentially all the safety and practical issues associated with the business. Thoroughly enjoyed it and it was a lot to take in. Some of it we knew, most of it we didn't and even the stuff we knew we weren't entirely sure how to apply. Talking to a guy who does it for a living (he still flies Jags) was an eye-opening and extremely motivating experience. On the parachute side, have decided on a Softie after talking to thier man, Jim, for quite a while last week. He's going to make up a seat pack rig for me with an aerobatic harness, based on your advice about the location of the hardware (thanks for that, by the way) It's also become time to replace the surplus bag I've been wearing for 3 years. I've looked at Flightsuits in California but are there any other shops where guys in the community tend to go for good quality and good prices? Any tips, as with the parachute advice, greatly appreciated! Hope you had a good 4th weekend! Cheers, Shawn "Dudley Henriques" wrote in message ink.net... About the negative stuff; the only reason I mentioned it was for you to make sure whatever harness you bought was comfortable on the negative side of things. The aerobatic harness is usually much more comfortable in this respect. One thing to keep in mind if you're going to be doing formation in a Pitts, and unfortunately it's not a very pleasant thought :-) Remember, if you DO make hard contact and have a wing failure, the flying wires will probably hold on the top wing and the wing will literally beat you to death before you can get out....so don't get too close!! :-)) Dudley "ShawnD2112" wrote in message ... Dudley, Sound advice. Negative stuff isn't the reason I've decided to get a chute. I've done a bit of negative but I'm staying away from any of the real stuff until I get some inverted spin training. No, what's really made me decide were two things. One is that I've started doing some basic formation work with a mate. While we're taking it slow and investing in some training, there's always the risk of something going wrong and someone's airplane touching someone else's. It's that scenario that makes a chute seem like a good idea. I've also got a bit of a phobia about fire in the cockpit. The other thing was a long term re-evaluation of the risks. When I first started flying the Pitts, I thought about a chute but initially ruled it out (they're not required for aerobatics in the UK, and, in fact, a lot of guys don't wear them). I ruled it out because I figured that to open the canopy, exit the aircraft, deploy the chute, and get one swing in before hitting the ground, I'd need to be about 2,000 feet up. Well, when competing andpracticing, I only ever got up that high at the tops of aerobatic maneuvers, not during the bulk of my flying. So, I figured, if I rarely fly high enough for a chute to work, what are the chances of being able to get that altitude if I needed it? Pretty slim, I reckoned, so I thought a chute was a comfort factor more than a real safety option. Now, that all said, I'd feel like a real tit if I found myself with an unflyable airplane and no means to get out of it. So screw all that misguided analysis above, I'm getting a bailout chute. I guess this is a case of experience and age teaching one a bit of wisdom? It seems silly to deny myself an option based on some flawed logic applied in the hangar. Thanks for the tip on the Softie. I'm going to give them a call tonight. Cheers, Shawn "Dudley Henriques" wrote in message link.net... "Dudley Henriques" wrote in message ink.net... Forgot to tell you. Whatever you buy, try it on first and make at least one flight in it with the Pitts. Don't baby the flight either. Take it out sustained both ways and see how it feels, especially inverted. Do a half roll, stabilize there and just hang for a bit and feel it on your back. You'll know if it's going to do the job for you. Dudley I thought that little "tidbit" about the flying wires would get a Grin out of you!! :-) It's true though. Getting out of a Pitts after an upper wing failure is REAL serious stuff!! Anyway, it's funny you should mention having a briefing at a pub. Believe it or not, when we were on the display circuit way back when, almost all of the pilots would get together late at night in some diner or bar somewhere and hash over programs and routine changes. I remember spending an entire all nighter one weekend at a diner in Falls Church Virginia with Art Scholl and two of the Thunderbirds. We were working on Art's inverted ribbon pickup in the Chipmunk. He wanted to make some changes and enter it from a modified tailslide. We worked it all out after eating about a dozen hamburgers washed down with copious amounts of coffee. He did it the "new way" the next afternoon. About the flight suit; you can get them made up custom, which might not be a bad idea. Be careful about the material. Nomex is an option, but you might not be as prone to a cockpit fire as I was in a P51 or a Bearcat! :-) I remember damn near roasting to death in my flight suit. All of your display flying will probably be done in the summer when it's hot as heel out on those wide open concrete ramps...not to mention cramped up in the Pitts cockpit :-) I'd opt for something "cool" in a flight suit. Where to get a good one is a toss up really. My wife made mine up for me. You might want to contact the Arrows and find out who makes theirs, or give Ray Hanna a call. Almost anyone in the business will have a handle on who's doing the custom work these days in flight suits. It's funny. I remember there was a lady in Pensacola who used to do all the sewing on the Blue Angel flightsuits for the team. Man, was SHE one busy lady!!! :-) I'm sure you can come up with something over there. As I said, the best place to get information on things like this is right inside the community itself. Don't be shy! Call um!! :-))) Dudley |
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