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The Reaper
06-02-2004, 19:42
For you legs and cherries out there who have never made a water jump before, here is what it looks like at Shark DZ in lovely Key West.

TR

Roguish Lawyer
06-02-2004, 20:03
Are these done in scuba gear? Looks like fun.

The Reaper
06-02-2004, 20:23
Originally posted by Roguish Lawyer
Are these done in scuba gear? Looks like fun.

Not unless you have a SCUBA mission.

They can be fun.

TR

QRQ 30
06-02-2004, 20:58
Originally posted by The Reaper
Not unless you have a SCUBA mission.

They can be fun.

TR

We included five water jumps in the SAR course in the 8th SFGA in the Canal Zone. Two were two w/SCUBA and the last included a 1000+ M underwater swim. The JM, I took my turn, could develope some good stone bruises on his hand from "helping" the jumpers up and out the door. I am on a different computere so refer to:
http://www.sfcommo.com/memoriesofaspecialforcessoldier/id8.html

OTOH we conducted monthly "Hollywood" water jumpers for physical profiles, VIPs and the just plain sick, lame and lazy who had enough horsepower to get on.

BTW: The water in TR's picture looks like it could make for an interesting swim to shore.

Radar Rider
06-03-2004, 02:50
Originally posted by Roguish Lawyer
Are these done in scuba gear? Looks like fun. I did a water jump at "Wood Lake Drop Zone" in beautiful Fayetteville, North Carolina. We jumped in PT clothes (shorts, t-shirt, running shoes) with added B-7 life preservers for those that might experience difficulty in the water. They were unnecessary (for me, anyway) as the reserve floated pretty well. The unit ran us through a water training program to be qualified for the jump, which included a 50 meter swim in full uniform with LBE and weapon, a 10 meter blind drop into the pool, and extracting one's self from beneath a collapsed and soaked parachute canopy.

The jump itself took place on a fabulously warm day in June. It was a great experience; one of my top three jumps.

Kyobanim
06-03-2004, 03:42
Nice. Looks like the guy in front is parasailing. Is that PR?

The Reaper
06-03-2004, 05:53
Originally posted by Kyobanim
Nice. Looks like the guy in front is parasailing. Is that PR?

No my comment in the intital post, "Shark DZ in lovely Key West" referred to Key West, FLORIDA, not Key West, PUERTO RICO.

Right ocean though.

TR

Kyobanim
06-03-2004, 06:38
Sorry bout that. I skipped the words and went straight to the picture. I tend to do things like that. :D

Jack Moroney (RIP)
06-03-2004, 07:07
The fun part ends when you haul your butt out of the water and spend the next half hour rinsing the salt water out of the chute. Water jumps where fun for everyone except the guys at Key West that got tasked to support the damn VIP jumps. I remember having to "escort" the XVIII Deputy CG to Key West so he could "experience" a water jump. The most amusing thing about that episode was the look on his face and that of his aide when they were told that the name of the DZ was Shark DZ. I think that they spent more time scanning the water for sillouettes of large sea creatures than they did paying attention to the direction of the wind. The aide got so wrapped up in becoming a fish snack he neglected to activate his canopy release assembly when he hit the water and was heading for Cuba with a chase boat close on his heals.

Jack Moroney

Razor
06-03-2004, 09:20
If its the same Hsu, I was an Infantry LT with the current CDQC commander.

Soft Target
07-17-2008, 12:26
For you old-time Bragg guys:

My first water jump was in late '72 into MacArthur Lake. It was a sport jump out of a Huey. The J/M was SFC Joseph "Batman" Barbarik; one helluva guy! It was one of his last jumps he made before going to Golden Knight Tryouts. He made the Team and was going on his first trip when he and 13 others were killed in the C-47 crash in March 73 in Chatham County, NC. I was fortunate to know and jumped with some of the others.

I went on to do several more water jumps in Panama and Yuma. COL M, looks like you and I are the only ones to shake a wet chute. Dave

The Reaper
07-17-2008, 12:31
Holy resurrected ancient post, Loggie!

TR

Pete
07-17-2008, 12:51
This is a Hollywood Para-SCUBA jump. Just the dive and parachute equipment.

KW9598
07-17-2008, 13:06
Great pics guys !

Chris Cram
07-17-2008, 15:28
Sirs

During a water jump on a dark night, are you coming in blind or are there visual queues?

KW9598
07-17-2008, 15:35
depending on the situation (training vs real world) there are chem lights (visible or IR) marking the drop zone release point. In the case of a training jump, one way to mark the release point is to have a inflatable buoy with 2 or 3 chem lights attached to it. From 1300-1500' it's visible.

adding a good picture also

lksteve
07-17-2008, 15:43
During a water jump on a dark night, are you coming in blind or are there visual queues?I've made a couple...I didn't find it that different from a night jump over land, in terms of visibility...of course, I haven't made a night water jump since 1978 and my memory may be a bit fuzzy...:munchin

Pete
07-17-2008, 16:57
Sirs

During a water jump on a dark night, are you coming in blind or are there visual queues?

Grouping, my man, grouping.

Most water jumps are for training and done during daylight. As such actions after you hit the water are mostly admin. - get the chutes and jumpers rounded up and into the boats then get ready for the next pass.

When you get into night training and ops you don't care where you come down - because you're coming down somewhere in water - you hope. Then it's all grouping in the air. Either low man or on the boat.

Toggles are not just decoration on the risers. Learn to use them or get your ass chewed by the Team Sergeant. If you can not do it in the daytime you're useless at night.


A bobbing boat is a hard thing to find at night. The first two jumpers had better plop down right next to it. The third had better be right close - and the rest "Fin Hard".

A rigged boat drops like a stone compared to jumpers. Even # 6 has a good chance of landing near it - with good wind and canopy control.

Chris Cram
07-17-2008, 17:27
To all:
From the KW9598-photo above, it looks like you separate rapidly. Getting back together prior to splash looked like it would be an issue. I have never jumped out of an aircraft w/o a rope, so getting separated from the team was never an issue. And it was never over water that wasn’t frozen. The idea of jumping out of a plane with parachute, ruck, weapon and tanks… well, this is pushing the envelope of personal mobility. But what a kick :)

Thanks

BMT (RIP)
07-17-2008, 17:47
Water jump Bolo Point Oki.

Maj. Daffy Duck would correct you on the least little thing wrong on a jump.

Working safety boat(RB-15) for a water jump(UH-21). Our boat had the fourth jumper in each lift.
Jumper 4 on the next lift looked good, until he went to release his capewell. We saw him reach up with his left hand to release his capewell, trouble was he forgot to reach up and ssecure with his right hand.

Fifty feet off the water he released his capewell, Maj. DD also forgot to inflate his water wing's. DD made a big splash and went under. :D

Joker never corrected anyone else on a jump.

BMT

Team Sergeant
07-17-2008, 17:57
Sirs

During a water jump on a dark night, are you coming in blind or are there visual queues?

If we told you..... you know the rest, I'm sure...:munchin

Chris Cram
07-17-2008, 20:57
BMT:

My first room mate in Alaska was a sp4 who had transfered to recon after his night jump accedent. From what I recall, he said they were hooked up and waiting, when the plane hit turbulance. Some how he fouled his line w/o noticing it, and did significan dammage to his right arm when he left the aircraft. When I met him in 77'all the muscle between the right elbo and sholder was in the upper half... the lower half was the size of his wrist.

What procedure should have caught this condition prior to exiting the aircraft?

Razor
07-17-2008, 22:13
What procedure should have caught this condition prior to exiting the aircraft?

"Check Equipment".

lksteve
07-17-2008, 22:22
What procedure should have caught this condition prior to exiting the aircraft?I would bet that he slung his static line toward the door...in every Jumpmaster or MACO/DACO pre-jump brief I gave or attended, the instructions were to hand the static line to the jumpmaster...and on every jump involving troopers other than A-team guys that I was a JM or safety on, I would have to say at least one knucklehead per pass would fling that mother at me...and every time I could, I would push it back at the trooper...the JM controls the static line at the door, the safeties check the static line as the stick progresses towards the door, but the #1 person responsible for control of the static line is the jumper...your buddy probably bears most of the responsibility for his injury, IMNSHO...:munchin

Chris Cram
07-18-2008, 00:12
...your buddy probably bears most of the responsibility for his injury, IMNSHO...:munchin

Yes Sir... Hard lesson for a young man.
But then again he did live... and still had two functional hands.

82ndtrooper
07-18-2008, 02:00
This is a Hollywood Para-SCUBA jump. Just the dive and parachute equipment.

Guess they didn't have rebreathers back then ?

Open circuit tanks, twin 80's with the chute packed on back. Nice !!!!:lifter

Pete
07-18-2008, 05:13
Guess they didn't have rebreathers back then ?


Didn't have rebreathers back then?

The Emerson Rig had been phased out by the mid 70's, late 70's saw the testing of the CCR 1000/Mk15 mixed gas system, mid 80s we went to the Dragger Lar5.

At the time the picture was taken we were using the Mk 15. It was back mounted and jumped similar to the twin 72s or 80s. Expensive rig.

The Dragger was/is chest mounted.

x SF med
07-18-2008, 11:58
Ah, yes - Gardner Lake, Gardner MA... clearing out the 'chutes that had been packed for just about too long, give the riggers some work... Water jumps to get the creases out of the canopies. Choppers rotating all day long: Jump, chase, jump, chase, jump, chase... until all the chutes from the shed were wet - it was actually exhausting after about the 4th jump that day, and I think I had 7 or 8 jumps and the same number of chases (RB15, evvie 40, best to be the driver, hauling wet 'chutes out of the lake got old and each chase boat got 2 -3 jumpers per drop)

Ah, the good old days!