# Skydiving Without A Parachute



## Blizzard (Jul 29, 2016)

He's a Skydiver Working With a Net, But No Parachute

@Freefalling, what are you doing this weekend?!

Don't know what to say about this other than... gutsy?


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## Ooh-Rah (Jul 29, 2016)

I heard about this on the radio this morning. Fucking stupid. If I were a betting man, I would think at the last second he realizes how dumb he's being.


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## Rapid (Jul 29, 2016)

:-/


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## Florida173 (Jul 29, 2016)

Vesna Vulović - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia


> Vesna Vulović; born ca. 1950 is a Serbian former flight attendant. She holds the distinction of being the world record holder, according to the Guinness Book of Records, for surviving the highest fall without a parachute: 10,160 metres (33,333 ft).



Other People that have fallen.



> Ivan Chisov, Soviet Air Force Lieutenant who fell from his Ilyushin Il-4 bomber in 1942
> Alan Magee, American, World War II airman who survived a 22,000-foot (6,700 m) fall from his damaged B-17F Flying Fortress in 1943
> Nicholas Alkemade, British Avro Lancaster gunner who fell from his burning aircraft in 1944
> Juliane Koepcke, sole survivor of LANSA Flight 508 Lockheed Electra break up who fell for about 3 km (1.9 mi) into the Amazon rainforest in 1971


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## AWP (Jul 29, 2016)

He's not the first to jump without a chute. That's been done numerous times though they all either acquired a chute in midair or were strapped to someone for deployment. He's also not the first to land without a chute. A Brit did it a few years ago with a wingsuit, landing in a huge pile of cardboard boxes. Unless the FAA is granting him a waiver he's obligated to jump with a TSO certified rig w/ some type of main and a TSO certified reserve. He would be the first to use a net and IF he has no parachute he'd be the first to land without a rig on his back.

Aikins is a beast, no doubt about that, but "first" needs some qualifications. The initial story I saw yesterday made it sound like he was breaking ground. At least the OP's link clarifies that it is the first into a net, not overall.

They've tested it and worked it out. There's obviously some risk, but he has the skill and experience to pull this off. I think it was Mark Hewitt who made the first skydive (not BASE jump) into Mexico's Cave of the Swallows. He dropped a dummy or two from a helo and both hit the edge of the cave. He said "screw it" and jumped successfully. Point is, even drop tests aren't 100% indicative of the actual results.


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## Blizzard (Jul 29, 2016)

Florida173 said:


> Vesna Vulović - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
> 
> 
> Other People that have fallen.


Freaky stuff.  Hopefully he has more than surviving as an objective.  A lot of people survive stuff but they eat from straws.

It'll be interesting to see what equipment he actually has; ie how he steers, etc. especially as he approaches the target.  He'll be at 118 mph +/- coming into the net.  That's a bit different than lining up an approach under canopy.


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## AWP (Jul 29, 2016)

Blizzard said:


> It'll be interesting to see what equipment he actually has; ie how he steers, etc. especially as he approaches the target.  He'll be at 118 mph +/- coming into the net.  That's a bit different than lining up an approach under canopy.



Pure speculation? I'd expect a tracking suit or standard freeflying suit if a wingsuit isn't used.


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## DasBoot (Jul 29, 2016)

Florida173 said:


> Vesna Vulović - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
> 
> 
> Other People that have fallen.


It's amazing- the human body can survive things like this, all while being one slip in the shower away from an aneurysm...


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## Blizzard (Jul 29, 2016)

Freefalling said:


> Pure speculation? I'd expect a tracking suit or standard freeflying suit if a wingsuit isn't used.


They say no wingsuit.


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## Raptor (Jul 29, 2016)

Heroic Skydiving Instructor Saves Life

This isn't the same as the other stories that have been posted in this thread, but it's still pretty amazing.
He had a parachute, but the reserve and main got tangled.


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## Ooh-Rah (Jul 29, 2016)

Not really sure why this is a discussion - the great documentary, Point Break demonstrates non-parachute flying technique very well!


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## AWP (Jul 29, 2016)

Ooh-Rah said:


> Not really sure why this is a discussion - the great documentary, Point Break demonstrates non-parachute flying technique very well!



A good friend of mine owned a DZ at that time and said the number of students blew up after the movie. Trivia: Patrick Swayze did his own jumps. He was still jumping as late as 1998. His brother is/ was a stuntman who was seriously injured in a BASE jump.

Blue skies.

P.S. The remake sucks monkey balls, harder than @pardus towards the end of the month.


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## Ooh-Rah (Jul 29, 2016)

Freefalling said:


> P.S. The remake sucks monkey balls, harder than @pardus towards the end of the month.



Thank you for validating what I had long suspected.  Bummed to hear that the movie sucked too.  :-"


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## Brill (Jul 29, 2016)

Isn't skydiving without a parachute simply called falling?


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## Ooh-Rah (Jul 30, 2016)

Even if he somehow survives this, he is still a dumbass.  Curious what the regular jumpers on this site think of his chances?

Meet the Husband and Father Who's Skydiving from 25,000 Feet Without a Parachute


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## Gunz (Jul 30, 2016)

lindy said:


> Isn't skydiving without a parachute simply called falling?



It depends on whether you make an attempt at style, i.e., gliding to your death with some semblance of aplomb; or screaming your lungs out as you tumble out of control.


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## AWP (Jul 30, 2016)

Ooh-Rah said:


> Even if he somehow survives this, he is still a dumbass.  Curious what the regular jumpers on this site think of his chances?
> 
> Meet the Husband and Father Who's Skydiving from 25,000 Feet Without a Parachute



I haven't jumped since 2007, but I think he'll live.


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## Ooh-Rah (Jul 30, 2016)

Freefalling said:


> I haven't jumped since 2007, but I think he'll live.



I guess in more depth, (and I've never jumped) I am trying to determine how he can plan on being so accurate with no chute and no wing suit to guide him.  Not a whole lot of room for error, and at that speed, what happens if he somehow lands feet or head first.  Crazy.


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## AWP (Jul 30, 2016)

Ooh-Rah said:


> I guess in more depth, (and I've never jumped) I am trying to determine how he can plan on being so accurate with no chute and no wing suit to guide him.  Not a whole lot of room for error, and at that speed, what happens if he somehow lands feet or head first.  Crazy.



A person can generate a bunch of forward movement, more so with something like a tracking suit. There's also math involved for something like this for the wind drift, throw of the airplane, etc. I seriously doubt he'll do the Mk 1 Mod 0 eyeball spotting like we used to do. As for controlling his body, that's "Easier" than you think. "Easy" for an experienced jumper, not so much for low time jumpers. He can probably make his body do whatever he wants and fly in any position he chooses. You'd be surprised at how much control one has in the sky.


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## Red Flag 1 (Jul 30, 2016)

At the risk of repeating myself. This just seems to capture the event: 



.


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## Raksasa Kotor (Jul 30, 2016)

Made it 10 minutes into the broadcast before I just couldn't do it anymore.


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## Gunz (Jul 30, 2016)

Crazy bastard just hit the net.


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## AWP (Jul 30, 2016)

Ocoka One said:


> Crazy bastard just hit the net.



I take it he lived?


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## Gunz (Jul 30, 2016)

Yeah, he lived. Back to the ballgame.


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## AWP (Jul 30, 2016)

Ocoka One said:


> Yeah, he lived. Back to the ballgame.





Freefalling said:


> I haven't jumped since 2007, but I think he'll live.



I am the smartest person on this board.


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## Red Flag 1 (Jul 30, 2016)

Someone will figure out a way to make money out of this


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## Ooh-Rah (Jul 30, 2016)

Red Flag 1 said:


> Someone will figure out a way to make money out of this



The military is trying to figure out how to duplicate this strategically.


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## Teufel (Jul 30, 2016)

It's a technique


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## DocIllinois (Jul 30, 2016)

Ooh-Rah said:


> The military is trying to figure out how to duplicate this strategically.



The new Pathfinder Level II task - spreading out Parachuteless Jumper Nets across a DZ.

The net will be a good equipment retaining measure if, for instance, the sudden stop tears an MBITR out of its pouch.


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## Florida173 (Jul 31, 2016)




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## Ooh-Rah (Jul 31, 2016)

Watching the video...no room for error.  I would have liked to see the stats below as he got closer to the ground.  Cannot believe he was still sitting at 148 BPM at 1ooo feet.


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## SpongeBob*24 (Jul 31, 2016)

I am surprised his Heart Rate was that high...he has something like 18000 jumps.

I haven't even tied my shoes that many times in my life....


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## Ooh-Rah (Aug 1, 2016)

If true, I would think there are folks on the board who may be familiar with him_. _

_Aikins is also a safety and training adviser for the United States Parachute Association and is certified to teach both students and skydiving instructors. His business Para Tactics provides skydiving training to Navy Seals and other members of elite fighting forces._


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## AWP (Aug 1, 2016)

Ooh-Rah said:


> If true, I would think there are folks on the board who may be familiar with him_. _
> 
> _Aikins is also a safety and training adviser for the United States Parachute Association and is certified to teach both students and skydiving instructors. His business Para Tactics provides skydiving training to Navy Seals and other members of elite fighting forces._



A number of elite skydivers (world champions/ record holders) and manufacturers do that. Flight-1 and Complete Parachute Systems came to mind, but I know others are out there.


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## Blizzard (Aug 2, 2016)

Awesome.  Not sure why he wore the helmet though. 

Wonder if the three other jumpers were triangulating position for him.  Obviously, they're pretty good at math.  Closing on a relatively small, transparent target 20 stories off the ground while travelling well over 100 mph doesn't allow for significant adjustments prior to impact...

Good on him.


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## Ex3 (Aug 2, 2016)

I just can't even... :/

http://www.nytimes.com/2016/07/31/us/skydiver-luke-aikins-without-parachute.html?mwrsm=Facebook&_r=0


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## Red Flag 1 (Aug 2, 2016)

Blizzard said:


> Awesome.  Not sure why he wore the helmet though.
> 
> Wonder if the three other jumpers were triangulating position for him.  Obviously, they're pretty good at math.  Closing on a relatively small, transparent target 20 stories off the ground while travelling well over 100 mph doesn't allow for significant adjustments prior to impact...
> 
> Good on him.



It really was something to watch. Considering the speed he was moving, and the size of the target, it must have been hard to turn his back on his target at the last second. If he drifted much off his trajectory with his turn, he could easily have missed the net.


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## AWP (Aug 2, 2016)

I finally saw the jump. Very interesting. I laughed at the practice touches and EP's for a harness and canopy that weren't there. If he doesn't roll he hits the net dead center and "dead" is probably the optimal word in that phrase.


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## Red Flag 1 (Aug 2, 2016)

Freefalling said:


> I finally saw the jump. Very interesting. I laughed at the practice touches and EP's for a harness and canopy that weren't there. If he doesn't roll he hits the net dead center and "dead" is probably the optimal word in that phrase.



I'm waiting for a tandem plunge into the net.


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## Ooh-Rah (May 11, 2017)

Still in disbelief that this guy made it...fuuuuck.


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## Gunz (May 11, 2017)

Ooh-Rah said:


> Still in disbelief that this guy made it...fuuuuck.



I think a few of those spectators in the crowd were secretly hoping he'd hit a rock. Just sayin...

I have to confess...years ago I was half-hoping Evil Kneivel would buy the farm on the Snake River Canyon jump. Just to shut him up.


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## Ranger Psych (May 14, 2017)

AWP said:


> I finally saw the jump. Very interesting. I laughed at the practice touches and EP's for a harness and canopy that weren't there. If he doesn't roll he hits the net dead center and "dead" is probably the optimal word in that phrase.



Hitting the net dead center isn't the issue, as he damn near did with the roll... the issue is that its way easier to "crumple" into the testicle in a scrotum configuration the net turns into around him as it stretches both by itself and it's support system takes up the energy.  Hitting it in a hard arch would have made lots of things bend back in ways contrary to physical design limitations of the architecture we're stuck working with.


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## CQB (May 14, 2017)

Meanwhile, in Colombo...

Not for the Faint-Hearted: Parachutist Crashes Into Power Lines


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## Ooh-Rah (May 3, 2020)

Jesus.


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## Ooh-Rah (Nov 15, 2020)

I bump this every once in a while because… The dude actually jumped out of an airplane without a parachute.


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