Maximum Wind Gust

[Megatron 0]

Im a bit confused on what the safely limits are on wind gusts, and wind speed in general. Clearly, 5 gusting to 10 is not a big deal but some jumpers Ive met have grounded themselves when it was 13 gusting to 18..perhaps rightfully so. But when you think about it the difference in wind speed is still the same (5 knots) so why not jump 13 to 18..I personally would. Now what about a 7 knot difference or a 10 knot? Or calm gusting to 10 vs. 20 gusting to 30. Same difference but obviously not the same conditions in this case! Can someone lay out some general guidelines to follow. I remember on student status 14mph was the cut-off but as a licensed skydiving there is not such stipulation and Im not a big fan of playing this kinda thing by ear.
What is the maximum wind gust that you find acceptable and would arguably jump in?

[mynamebedan 0]

i would jump in 20mph winds before i would jump in 13 gusting to 18

[rhys 0]

13 gusting 18 would really be a concern for someone with 100 jumps, you would have to be real current and confident, and know the area well before it would be considered safe.

That is not to say you wouldn't be allowed to jump.

"When the power of love overcomes the love of power, then the world will see peace." - 'Jimi' Hendrix

[gearless_chris 1]

I don't LIKE to jump in anything over 10, I prefer between 0 and 5 because I like to land downwind. 20 is my limit, gusting or not. I've done up to 24 for work jumps. I don't like coming straight down.

"If it wasn't easy stupid people couldn't do it", Duane.

My momma said I could be anything I wanted when I grew up, so I became an a$$hole.

[fincher 0]

I will jump in a hurricane. i have the pictures to prove it

i'll huff and I'll puff and I'll burn your packing tent down

[CornishChris 5]

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jumpers Ive met have grounded themselves when it was 13 gusting to 18..perhaps rightfully so

Definitely rightfully so. If you chos to ground yourself because you are not happy with the conditionsthen so be it - good for you.

I have walked away from many jumps because I wasn't happy. I was recently jumping at a large DZ that had a 400 jump limit on for the high winds. There was a guy with 30 jumps jumping which I thoroughly disagreed with but only because he was part of our group and I didn't want shit if he hurt himself. Jump within your limits and not within someone elses - if you think it is too high, it is too high for you and step down. The sky will be there tomorrow.

CJP

Gods don't kill people. People with Gods kill people

[ufk22 33]

This is something you have to figure out for yourself. What is a safe wind varies with the individual and the location. I jump in the upper midwest (Minnesota/Dakota's) and we always have wind. Up here, I'll jump wind over 20 MPH if they're steady, and would jump 6-8 MPH gusts if the top is under 20, but you have to be ready. A big drop in wind speed 20' off the ground can cause a lot of problems if you're not ready. Also, I jump a Stelletto, which has a very quick recovery.
Arizona is a different story, as winds down there seem to change faster. I jumped in 12-16 mph winds down ther a few years ago.
I landed, dropped 1 toggle to get my canopy on the ground quick, but a gust grabbed my canopy, picked me up, and dropped me back down about 30' from where I'd been standing. Broken collar bone.
Be careful

This is the paradox of skydiving. We do something very dangerous, expose ourselves to a totally unnecesary risk, and then spend our time trying to make it safer.

[councilman24 37]

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but some jumpers Ive met have grounded themselves when it was 13 gusting to 18..perhaps rightfully so.

Don't EVER question someone else decesion not to jump! And don't ever let someone else question YOUR decision. I'm willing to jump in pretty high, STEADY winds because I don't mind backing up at altitude and coming straight down for landing. And if gust were ONLY clean changes in wind speed like in a wind tunnel that might not be so bad. But gusts equal turbulence, and changing turbulence and that is what hurts people.

I'll jump in a steady 20, and probably a little higher without much thought.

I'm old for my age.
Terry Urban
D-8631
FAA DPRE

[GLIDEANGLE 1]

Here is a wind assessment that I was taught. Look at who is NOT getting on the plane. If the more experienced (perhaps grey haired) jumpers are not getting on the plane.... stay on the ground.

On a recent windy day I saw an example of this. I watched the jumpers board the plane.... two tandem instructors and passengers, two camera flyers for the tandems.... and three guys with about 100 jumps each. So the load consisted of professionals who get paid to jump, passengers, and low timers. All the other jumpers were staying on the ground drinking Mountian Dew and flirting with the wenches. Fortunately, in this case no one got hurt. However, I have found this rule helpful.

Actually the rule above was taught to me in a more specific way. I was told to keep my eye on one specific jumper. She has MANY jumps, was a naval aviator, and is currently an airline pilot. I was told that if she won't jump....DON'T get on the plane.

Another tool I use is to watch the tandems land. If they are descending vertically or backing up on final... I am gonna have lunch and a soda pop. I find watching the tandems helpful as they are usually loaded more like me...instead of watching the folks on the more highly loaded canopies which fly faster.

If in doubt, sit it out.

The choices we make have consequences, for us & for others!

[davelepka 4]

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Im a bit confused on what the safely limits are on wind gusts, and wind speed in general. Clearly, 5 gusting to 10 is not a big deal but some jumpers Ive met have grounded themselves when it was 13 gusting to 18..

This is really confusing to you? Really?

Gusting winds create ever-changing conditions, and you never know what you're going to get when it's time to land. Even is the differential between gusts is the same, when the high end is getting close your personal maximum, the gusty conditions should rightfully be considered.

Wind gusts need to be considered when making a go/ no-go decision.

Wind speed needs to be considered when making a go/no-go decision.

Doesn't it stand to reason that when you have some of each factor present, the two could add up to a no-go decision? Maybe not enough wind speed to keep you down, and maybe not enough gusts to keep you down, but combine the two, and it's Miller time.

Another point, about watching who is, and is not, jumping as an indicator of the conditions, do not look to the staff as a factor. The tandem and video guys will typically jump in conditions which are borderline (or beyond). The money factor sometimes plays a part, pressure from the DZO may play a part, and pressure from the other staffers may play a part. Their decisions are not always based purely on safety.

An interesting thing to note would be which of the staff members are actually doing the jumping. It might not be a coincidence that the laod going up in shitty weather has the newer/younger staff guys on it. On any other day, this might just be a result of the rotation, but what you may not know is that the older guys are sitting in the office saying, 'Fuck that, I'm not jumping in these conditions'.

Lastly, why would you want to jump in conditions that are borderline? It's your money, and you're just there to have fun. I can tell you from experince that I have made many, many jumps that I was not overly excited about. I was confident that I could handle the conditions present, but knew going in that is was going to be a alot of work, and not the good time that I'm used to.

Again, the only reason I was up on those days was either for the money, or to get the students up for the DZO or the other instructors. I would have never made a fun jump on those days.

[justme12001 0]

my personal approach to wind is to ignore it! Don't think about the wind, fly and land the canopy. If the tandems are flying then go with it. It's good to know how to land in all wind types,what are you gonna do if the plane takes off in calm 5mph winds and on the ride up is starts gusting to 20? I like to "feel" what the canopy is doing and try not to think about wind. Take a canopy class and they will most likely teach you the same thing

[gearless_chris 1]

Gusting winds create ever-changing conditions, and you never know what you're going to get when it's time to land. Even is the differential between gusts is the same, when the high end is getting close your personal maximum, the gusty conditions should rightfully be considered.

Wind gusts need to be considered when making a go/ no-go decision.

Wind speed needs to be considered when making a go/no-go decision.

Doesn't it stand to reason that when you have some of each factor present, the two could add up to a no-go decision? Maybe not enough wind speed to keep you down, and maybe not enough gusts to keep you down, but combine the two, and it's Miller time.

Another point, about watching who is, and is not, jumping as an indicator of the conditions, do not look to the staff as a factor. The tandem and video guys will typically jump in conditions which are borderline (or beyond). The money factor sometimes plays a part, pressure from the DZO may play a part, and pressure from the other staffers may play a part. Their decisions are not always based purely on safety.

An interesting thing to note would be which of the staff members are actually doing the jumping. It might not be a coincidence that the load going up in shitty weather has the newer/younger staff guys on it. On any other day, this might just be a result of the rotation, but what you may not know is that the older guys are sitting in the office saying, 'Fuck that, I'm not jumping in these conditions'.

Lastly, why would you want to jump in conditions that are borderline? It's your money, and you're just there to have fun. I can tell you from experience that I have made many, many jumps that I was not overly excited about. I was confident that I could handle the conditions present, but knew going in that is was going to be a a lot of work, and not the good time that I'm used to.

Again, the only reason I was up on those days was either for the money, or to get the students up for the DZO or the other instructors. I would have never made a fun jump on those days.

[bwilling 0]

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If the more experienced (perhaps grey haired) jumpers are not getting on the plane.... stay on the ground.

You can't use that indicator on Fridays, some of the geriatric crew are crazy, and will jump in way more wind than you and I will!

"If all you ever do is all you ever did, then all you'll ever get is all you ever got."

[Reginald 0]

The more jumps I have the lower my winds limits become.

"We've been looking for the enemy for some time now. We've finally found him. We're surrounded. That simplifies things." CP

[JohnDeere 0]

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If the more experienced (perhaps grey haired) jumpers are not getting on the plane.... stay on the ground.

You can't use that indicator on Fridays, some of the geriatric crew are crazy, and will jump in way more wind than you and I will!

Amen to that!

To OP my wind limit is 24 if the winds are VERY steady. Gust are a whole nother story. I am ok with 5 mph gust if the wind stays below 15 mph. Any gust at all with the winds above 20 mph and im out. There is allways another day. I have road a few plains down when the winds got bad while on my way up to alt. I will back out even quiker if im on a jump with a lower time jumper with Less than 100 jumps, becuase i dont want to pressure them into jumping. I feel if i back out they wont feel bad or scared to back out.

Nothing opens like a Deere!

You ignorant fool! Checks are for workers!

[firstime 0]

ding ding, we have a winner...In my book anyway

[wolfriverjoe 1,523]

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... Clearly, 5 gusting to 10 is not a big deal but some jumpers Ive met have grounded themselves when it was 13 gusting to 18..perhaps rightfully so. But when you think about it the difference in wind speed is still the same (5 knots) so why not jump 13 to 18..

Or calm gusting to 10 vs. 20 gusting to 30. Same difference but obviously not the same conditions in this case! ...

...What is the maximum wind gust that you find acceptable and would arguably jump in?

It isn't the difference in the speed as much as the speed of the gust. As was said, gusts mean turbulence. A gust to 20 is going to create a lot more turbulence than a gust to 10 no matter the base speed. And gusts often include a slight direction shift in addition to the speed.

Personally, 20 if it's steady, but 10 gusting to 15 are my max. Although I'll sit it out at lower speeds if I haven't jumped in a while, and might go a little higher if I've jumped a lot recently.

"There are NO situations which do not call for a French Maid outfit." Lucky McSwervy

"~ya don't GET old by being weak & stupid!" - Airtwardo

[VideoFly 0]

I think a lot depends on the type of canopy, wing loading, the experience of the jumper and his/her judgement. If you lack the experience and good judgement, follow a mentor. For me, the trees tell me when the wind is unsafe. Learn to listen to the trees if there are any on your DZ.

[jtiflyer 0]

I agree watching the people who have been around a while, if the "d" license holders are on the ground the 100 jump wonders should reconsider getting on the plane. I've talked people out of getting onto a plane (even though I was going but I was getting paid), and was thanked later on.

just to put it all in perspective, at my dz the TI's and video guys (including me) will jump up to 32, but we are all really well trained in jumping higher winds. Thats not to say we dont have ti's not go in those conditions cause we do.

[BIGUN 1,297]

I'll jump wind over 30 MPH if they're steady, however if there is a 10 mph gust factor in there, I'll wait till it sinks back to steady or take the day off.

Nobody has time to listen; because they're desperately chasing the need of being heard.

[yoink 321]

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my personal approach to wind is to ignore it!

what are you gonna do if the plane takes off in calm 5mph winds and on the ride up is starts gusting to 20?

I'm going to stay in the plane.
You want to jump in 15mph gusts, go for it. Canopy collapses make for great video...

[Baksteen 84]

Having hit the 'magic' 200+ jump numbers, there is no legal cutoff for me anymore.
But according to this conversion site I'll jump steady winds up to 20 mph (9 m/s - the wind limit for people with 6-200 jumps). Whether or not I'll amnifest is depending on currency, familiarity with the DZ, outs, hazards on/near the LZ etc.
It also depends on what I'm doing on such a jump - a hop 'n' pop in which I can't do anything but "pull and flare" because I'm going straight down just isn't much fun.

Gusts are a whole different kind of beast. I guess I'd jump gusty conditions - but only if the difference isn't too big. What exactly constitutes 'too big a difference' depends on the same factors I described above.

Conversely, I *love* jumping on no-wind days no matter what I'm doing. Once my canopy is open I can play around a little and have some fun flying.

"That formation-stuff in freefall is just fun and games but with an open parachute it's starting to sound like, you know, an extreme sport."
~mom

[mnealtx 0]

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Take a canopy class and they will most likely teach you the same thing

I don't recall Scott Miller teaching any such thing.

Mike
I love you, Shannon and Jim.
POPS 9708 , SCR 14706

[davelepka 4]

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my personal approach to wind is to ignore it! Don't think about the wind, fly and land the canopy. If the tandems are flying then go with it. It's good to know how to land in all wind types,what are you gonna do if the plane takes off in calm 5mph winds and on the ride up is starts gusting to 20? I like to "feel" what the canopy is doing and try not to think about wind

I disagree with this approach to managing wind conditions 100%. I would discourage anyone from using this approach when makign decision about their personal safety.

Wind speed and conditions are a huge factor in your skydive, and need to be treated as such. This is not an area to be taken lightly, and a cavalier attitude in this area can lead to serious injuries or death.

As much as I hate to do it, looking at the posters profiel reveals a very high WL on both main and reserve with a short time in the sport, and jump numbers well below what Brain Germains WL chart would call for at those loadings. Please take these factors into consideration before taking advice from this person.

[yoink 321]

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my personal approach to wind is to ignore it! Don't think about the wind, fly and land the canopy. If the tandems are flying then go with it. It's good to know how to land in all wind types,what are you gonna do if the plane takes off in calm 5mph winds and on the ride up is starts gusting to 20? I like to "feel" what the canopy is doing and try not to think about wind

I disagree with this approach to managing wind conditions 100%. I would discourage anyone from using this approach when makign decision about their personal safety.

Wind speed and conditions are a huge factor in your skydive, and need to be treated as such. This is not an area to be taken lightly, and a cavalier attitude in this area can lead to serious injuries or death.

As much as I hate to do it, looking at the posters profiel reveals a very high WL on both main and reserve with a short time in the sport, and jump numbers well below what Brain Germains WL chart would call for at those loadings. Please take these factors into consideration before taking advice from this person.

I've just noticed that he's apparently an instructor too...