Of parachutes and things

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

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