Balloon jump with A License

[tfg30 0]

Is there anywhere in the US (or perhaps abroad) that will allow an 'A' License holder make a balloon jump?

Second, is this advisable?

I'm fresh off my A, and a balloon jump is at the top of my to-do list.

Thanks!

[mattjw916 2]

most places it's generally just "50 jumps" that you need (and I don't think anyone's ever asked to see my logbook before getting in the gondola, lol)... not the B unless you're jumping from a balloon into water or something

anyway, Eloy does regular balloon jumps and you could easily knock out enough jumps there to reach the minimum in a few days if you were really motivated

remember, on a balloon jump you will be landing out so you need to be solid on your canopy skills, adept at choosing a safe improvised landing area, judge wind direction possibly without a windsock or any flags around, and have decent accuracy so plan accordingly...

personally as a freshly minted A, I'd focus more on building skills rather than adding complexity until you get a few more jumps under your belt... recommended minimums are there for a reason

NSCR-2376, SCR-15080

[Hellis 0]

tfg30

Is there anywhere in the US (or perhaps abroad) that will allow an 'A' License holder make a balloon jump?

Second, is this advisable?

I'm fresh off my A, and a balloon jump is at the top of my to-do list.

Thanks!

Why such a rush?
Wait till you can land the canopy with more accuracy and the jump will be more joyable instead of fear because you don't have the canopy skill mentioned by previous poster.

[CSpenceFLY 1]

With the canopy skills today I'm surprised that many places still allow them with just 50 jumps. I have been considering raising it to 100 at my event.

We use to jump into my yard on New Years and 4th of July. I wouldn't even consider an open invite like we use to do.

[DivingWombat 0]

CSpenceFLY

With the canopy skills today I'm surprised that many places still allow them with just 50 jumps. I have been considering raising it to 100 at my event.

We use to jump into my yard on New Years and 4th of July. I wouldn't even consider an open invite like we use to do.

200 jumps limit here. I think it makes sense.

[Hellis 0]

Here it's C-licens, 200 jumps.
I believe there is 20 accuracy jumps required for C.

And I agree 50 is very low, and asking for a place without limit is asking for trouble in my opinion.
But I guess it all depends on the terrain in the area.

[LiborJanicek 0]

Balloon jumps are super fun but expensive. I've done a few jumps @ Perris, $100 per jump to around 7k. I'd would rather use $100 on 3 jumps and a few pack jobs.

[Phil1111 1,149]

Go for it.

Some DZs are allot tighter than the generally open country that balloons need to land.

More fun than a helicopter, except that a helicopter can can put you back on the dz.

[tfg30 0]

Thanks a lot for the great replies.
I get the feeling that I should probably wait until I have a bit more experience. I will reconsider when I have my B. Just wanted to get everyone's opinion!

[DrewEckhardt 0]

***Go for it.

Some DZs are allot tighter than the generally open country that balloons need to land.
[/QUOTE]

Don't go for it.

The spots the balloon flies over which you're jumping into don't have any limits on distances to obstacles, and more time in the sport makes "just jumping" less novel and exciting so the jumper is more likely to notice things under canopy like power lines.

[JerryBaumchen 1,371]

Hi matt,

Quote

on a balloon jump you will be landing out

Not always. I did my one and only baloon jump in 1984 at Perris, CA ( the dz was closed that day ), we took off about 2 miles from the dz, got to a little over 4,000 ft & over the side I went.

Opened around 2k, checked the winds and landed in the peas at the dz. A couple of guys were there packing their rigs and gave me the funniest look; as in, 'Where the H*** did you come from?'



JerryBaumchen

[ianyapxw 0]

As someone new here, why exactly are canopy skills so bad in recent years?

Have regulations been relaxed?

[potatoman 0]

No, just that canopies over the years got faster, and it's "cool" to have a fast wing. But fast into the ground does tend to Fu*&^ you up a bit.

Back to the balloon question:
If you can answer the following, you should be able to do the balloon jump.

How fast will you be falling at 1sec delay?
How fast will you be falling at 7sec delay?
What distance did you fall on the bove two questions?
What is your snivel on the bove two questions?
If you get 3000Ft AGL and have to jump, what is your hard deck for your reserve if you have a high and low speed mal?
Did you see a contour map of the area from take off, so you know the difference in AGL to where you are?
Can you determine the wind direction when landing in a field?
How much force from your pilot chute is required to pull your main out?
Can you pack for a quicker opening?
Blah blah blah. Small things you need to consider to be safe, or you can just go jump and hope for the best. I would recommend you do some thorough homework, and then avaluate yourself, and go.

You have the right to your opinion, and I have the right to tell you how Fu***** stupid it is.
Davelepka - "This isn't an x-box, or a Chevy truck forum"
Whatever you do, don't listen to ChrisD.

[tfg30 0]

This is great. Thanks.
Lots of things to consider.

[lyosha 50]

How would one pack for a quicker opening? I thought that usually people pack for slower openings...

[potatoman 0]

There are ways, talk to a packer/rigger, they can advise you.

When you jump from a balloon, you want a quick opening, you normally do not have a lot of height. The quicker you are open, the better.

You have the right to your opinion, and I have the right to tell you how Fu***** stupid it is.
Davelepka - "This isn't an x-box, or a Chevy truck forum"
Whatever you do, don't listen to ChrisD.

[Hellis 0]

potatoman

There are ways, talk to a packer/rigger, they can advise you.

When you jump from a balloon, you want a quick opening, you normally do not have a lot of height. The quicker you are open, the better.

Before you pack for a quicker opening, talk to others who has made balloonjumps in the area.
We generally exit at 2500-3000 m, which will take us to terminal velocity.

[JerryBaumchen 1,371]

Hi Iyosha,

Quote

How would one pack for a quicker opening?

Based only upon my one balloon jump, why would you want to pack for a quicker opening?

I would suggest just getting out at an altitude that after ~ 10 sec delay, you would be at the altitude that you want to deploy at.

Just my $0.02,

JerryBaumchen

[Phil1111 1,149]

potatoman

There are ways, talk to a packer/rigger, they can advise you.

When you jump from a balloon, you want a quick opening, you normally do not have a lot of height. The quicker you are open, the better.

Have you actually ever personally jumped from one?

[hangdiver 1]

I have about 30 balloon camera jumps all leaving from outside the basket on my back...at Eloy.

I would follow the above advice on getting your landing accuracy down. I would also advise to try looking for and identifying power lines, fences and other obstacles while flying under canopy...only after clearing the airspace...you don't want a canopy collision...so you will be familiar with that aspect of the jump.

You may want to do some Cessna jumps having the pilot slow it down to get the feel of dead air exits. The first 5 seconds you have no control...the step off and launch is critical if you want a stable exit. There seems to be an overwhelming urge to windmill ones arms and legs for some people the first few seconds before building up enough speed for control.

My exit strategy was to do some deep breathing to relax before just letting go and basically just fall away on my back with no push whatsoever.

I have to admit I've never exited belly to earth from a balloon.YMMV

Good luck

hangdiver

"Mans got to know his limitations"
Harry Callahan

[lyosha 50]

JerryBaumchen

Hi Iyosha,

Quote

How would one pack for a quicker opening?

Based only upon my one balloon jump, why would you want to pack for a quicker opening?

I would suggest just getting out at an altitude that after ~ 10 sec delay, you would be at the altitude that you want to deploy at.

Just my $0.02,

JerryBaumchen

I'm not necessarily saying I would want to. I'm just curious as to what that would entail.

[potatoman 0]

Not all balloons are dedicated for jumping, and not all balloon pilots want to go up that high.

If the OP got a chance to jump from 3500ft, better he knows what to expect, and damn sure to have a quick opening. Wouldn't really want hesitation on extraction or a 1000ft snivel.

To the OP, I have found jumping last gets you the most altitude, as people leave the basket, the higher she goes. There is another thing where the pilot actually puts the balloon in a decent before you jump, but I'm not a baloon pilot, so I will stop at that.

You have the right to your opinion, and I have the right to tell you how Fu***** stupid it is.
Davelepka - "This isn't an x-box, or a Chevy truck forum"
Whatever you do, don't listen to ChrisD.

[Hellis 0]

I have always thought balloonpilots don't want to go higher as people jump off.

And how exactly do you recommend to pack for a quicker opening and beeing a reasonable idea?

[potatoman 0]

That is a bit canopy specific, but in my case, I roll the nose, and stuff it in fairly deep on normal skydives. Get a good 800ft snivel.
When I do a H&P from low alti or like the balloon jump, I don't roll the nose, and keep the nose more exposed, so it would catch air a lot quicker, and inflate faster. This is on a 150hornet, and my personal way of doing it.

Our pilot has put the balloon in a decent, when people jump, the balloon starts to climb again, then he intentionally puts it back into a decent, before the next person/s jumps again. This way he kinda maintains his altitude, but I have found that the later you exit, the more altitude, even if it is by 2/300 ft, and have seen even 500ft difference, which makes for a lot when you are lowish.

You have the right to your opinion, and I have the right to tell you how Fu***** stupid it is.
Davelepka - "This isn't an x-box, or a Chevy truck forum"
Whatever you do, don't listen to ChrisD.

[Dean358 0]

Good advice in this thread. Here is a little more, courtesy of Bill Von:

A VERY good guideline for deciding whether or not one should do a balloon jump is whether or not one is qualified to do a demo. Demos are off-DZ jumps, as are most balloon jumps. To do the simplest, most basic demo USPA lists the following requirements:

USPA C license or higher
minimum 200 jumps
50 jumps within the past 12 months
five jumps within the previous 60 days using the same model and size canopy to be used on the jump

That's from an incident thread regarding a jumper with 130 jumps flying a Saber 2 loaded 1.1-to-1. She misjudged when to exit the balloon (lots of trees in the Northeast) and in trying to land in a confined area she was very badly injured. Thread here:

http://www.dropzone.com/cgi-bin/forum/gforum.cgi?do=post_view_flat;post=4160982;page=1;sb=post_latest_reply;so=ASC;mh=25;

As others have said, perhaps it would be best to spend some time working on your canopy skills and overall airmanship. Enjoy that process (!) and make a balloon jump one of your future skydiving goals.

www.wci.nyc