Safety And The Risks In Skydiving

Safety And The Risks In Skydiving

Skydiving is a sport that involves a multitude of risks. Safety and risks are different thing. While the risks are measured, the safety is judged. The safety can be defined as a personal or social acceptance of looking at risk.

In what regards the risks, they are measured as quantities. The probability of something to happen combined with the severity of the repercussions give the risks. The probabilities and the severity are divided into categories. The probabilities have five such categories: Frequent, Probable, Occasional, Remote and Improbable and the severity of the action has four categories: Catastrophic, Critical, Marginal and Negligible. For instance, a rubber band breaking the possibility is “frequent – negligible” while for a double malfunction the risk would be “remote – catastrophic”. “Occasional – catastrophic” or “occasional – critical” are the risks encountered most often for malfunctions.

In skydiving, a risk costs can be assigned to any event, based on the given definition. Observation over the years and the measurements from the test drops should be the base for the value of a risk. Yet, this doesn't always happen.

The perception of risk

The perception of risk is sometime done on a subjective base. The values of risks are higher in case of voluntary events within control of the beholder than in the case of mandatory events that put a person beyond control. Thus, skydiving presents a greater risk than breathing air.

The events trailed by dreaded results or catastrophic consequences present a higher risk. The sports and occupations also have different values of risk depending on the amount of fatalities encountered.

The perceptions of probability can also be affected by the maturation of technology. Taking the example of the power plants, a coal power plant is less risky than a nuclear power plant because people know much more things about burning coal than about nuclear technology.

The risks are also directly connected to the complexity of the system. The difficulty to understand a system is given by its complexity and up through this difficulty; the necessity increases because only by a sharper acknowledgement of the system, the corrections and the ways of preventing events are obtained.

The assessment of risks

Understanding a system fully and without gaps will decrease the risks of unfortunate events. A system must have no secrets for the person that operates it as if there are things that are not understood, complications may appear if an event is generated by that unknown element. Also, in a system, not only its components should be well known, but the reasons of failure too. This is obtained through observation and continuous monitoring of the system's performance. Risks can be reduced by prevention of failure or corrective plans. The means for system failure can be human, mechanical or environmental.

The risks involved by skydiving

Values of risks can be given to any event in skydiving. The gear and technique knowledge in skydiving is the main base of the risk value assessment. If a person knows the equipment, the parachute, the characteristics, the techniques and all the other factors involved by skydiving, he or she greatly reduces the risks of an event. If the equipment is really well known, the system performance monitoring is accurate and malfunctions can be discovered in time if they appear, going down thus the risks. Different ways to escape injuries also reduce the risks, therefore emergency procedures and alternative plans have been elaborated.

Understanding the gear, the parachute, its characteristics, acknowledging and using the controls properly and having stopping and correcting plans will reduce the risks and increase the effectiveness or risks assessment.

What You Need to Know About Skydiving Helmets

What You Need to Know About Skydiving Helmets

Skydiving helmets are the most basic and most necessary skydiving equipment that one must get on a top priority before going skydiving. The skydiving helmets are usually made from Carbon fiber. It is a protective gear that protects the head of the skydiver from injuries in case of accidents during the fall or during landing.

Where the odds of landing safely and alive is greater than the odds of being killed in skydiving, the odds of being killed is greater than being paralyzed during an accident in skydiving. The bones in the body recover with time, but only a few people recover from a skull damage. So, one must always get a proper skydiving helmet.

While selecting a helmet, one must make sure that he is very comfortable with it. Because during skydiving, one must feel at ease with what he is wearing and so that the movements are not restricted in mid air.

The skydiving helmets are to cover the head from bumping in the plane and mid air collisions. They furthermore protect the head from bumping into the objects or tree branches on which one may land amidst.

While some people like wearing their helmets, specific of the people prefer very lightweight helmets and some people prefer no helmet at all. The jumper must be aware of the protection promised by different helmet styles and he must be comfortable and non complaining with the risks associated.

Before one go to purchase a helmet, he must learn about its working. It may also be helpful in his selection. An important characteristic of a good helmet is that it should absorb as much impact force as possible and must not break with a comparatively smaller force.

The uppermost part of the helmet, called the shell is designed to break when hit with a sufficiently hard impact. The shell and the liner work in such a way to distribute the force and the energy of the impact. The liner of the helmet should be designed to absorb a greater amount of impact energy. A good helmet has the same sort of hard liner that a motorcycle helmet has.

Sky diving helmets are available in many types in market. As a fact, there are number of helmets available in the market which do a lot more than just protecting the head. Some of the skydiving helmets are available with an inbuilt video camera which records the scenery while you are heading towards the earth and it has become very popular with the community.

Normally, the brand of material used to make the skydiving helmet determines its price. If one wants to get the best skydiving helmet available in the market, then it is highly recommended that he does a quick survey of the helmets that are available in the market.

5 Essential Pieces Of Skydiving Equipment

5 Essential Pieces Of Skydiving Equipment

Skydiving is not just about getting on a plane, leaping and then letting gravity take over. Doing that will definitely get you killed. You need to realize that there are certain types of skydiving equipments that you must have in order to survive a jump.

That's right: survive.

When you think about it, skydiving is an activity that actually puts your life on the line. You need to take this into account and remember that skydiving is not a joke. You need every piece of equipment you can get your hands on in order to ensure that you both enjoy and survive the experience.

Here are some pieces of skydiving equipments you should definitely have:

1) The Parachute - Who would be stupid enough to engage in skydiving without a parachute? Skydiving doesn't actually involve you merely diving -you need to make sure that you reach the ground safely, right? When you get a parachute, you might want to get some professional help. Most skydiving centers actually give you certified and regularly inspected equipments. This option is a whole lot cheaper and safer than going out and buying your own chute.

2) Jumpsuits - You cannot make a jump wearing jeans and a t-shirt. You need a jumpsuit. What is the importance of having a jumpsuit? Well, you have to realize that during a jump, you are exposed to the elements. You experience strong winds and other forces of nature. Because of this, you need to be well protected. A good jumpsuit will help buffer your body from the strong air resistance and prevent your clothes from being torn apart by the winds.

A good jumpsuit will also protect you upon landing. More often than not, people who go skydiving end their jumps lying on the ground. A good jumpsuit will prevent you from getting any scratches and cuts from the ground.

3) AAD - This is the automatic activation device - one of the most essential pieces of skydiving equipment you need. This device actually releases your parachute when you can't do it manually. The AAD works by detecting the speed of your descent. By making sure that the descent speed matches with what is predicted, the AAD can detect whether you have opened your chute properly. If not, the AAD automatically releases the auxiliary chute or your back-up chute. This device definitely saves lives.

4) Altimeter - If you are on a freefall, you need to remember to open your parachute at a specific altitude. Open it too late and the parachute may not be able to slow your descent enough to enable you to land safely. Open it too early and the canopy could be ripped by the strong air resistance. An altimeter tells you whether it is the right time for you to release your chute. If you are jumping at night, the altimeter can be the only thing to serve as your eyes and tell you if you are about to hit the ground.

5) Protective gear - Of course, you need to have A helmet, padding and other types of protective gear to help prevent any injuries. The helmet is the most basic protective gear you can get, but you should also thinK about getting a spinal protector. This piece of skydiving equipment will protect your spine if you fall on your back when landing on the ground.

Skydiving Equipment And Gear

Choosing the Right Skydiving Equipment And Gear

Everyone getting ready to go skydiving should make absolutely sure that they have the appropriate gear. You will want to look into your own comfort while sky diving, but also, the essential is the safety equipment used. All of this appropriate skydiving equipment is what makes the differences between being able to enthusiastically tell the story of your skydiving experience for many years to come. The right skydiving gear will turn the trip into an exhilarating experience that you will never forget.

In order to go sky diving in style, you will need everything from a suit to boots and head gear.  Skydiving is an activity that often times warrants renting equipment instead of purchasing it because of the sheer cost of buying everything that is needed for an activity that you're going to do only a couple times a year. In fact, most companies that offer their services for taking people up into the sky and advising them on the moment to drop include the price of equipment rental in their fee. It is only logical that sky diving gear should be provided by the company who is taking you sky diving.

For customers getting ready to jump, sky diving is not at all an every day occurrence; the feeling of getting ready to jump is totally different for the jumper than for the people who go up with the plane every day to facilitate clients' skydiving experience. Sky diving equipment, though high on the list of importance for safety reasons, is not a focal point for people who see sky diving up close every day of the week. Of course, they are not looking to cause accidents, but for them, a parachute is a parachute, not a magic wand.

Skydiving equipment should be of top quality to begin with as well as being flawlessly maintained and carefully checked after each jump. As you choose a company that will be your host for your sky diving equipment, make sure that quality is highest on your list of priorities.

Check and double check the company's history with concern to their planes and everything inside them as well as the jumper's equipment from parachute to head gear. Though ultimately, this is the company's responsibility, every jumper should take the importance of safety and proper equipment into their own hands. When in doubt, seek a second opinion, and always get more recommendations for a sky diving company than you would for a hairdresser.