Camelbak developed the Big Jump to satisfy a requirement out of the 82nd Airborne Division for an assault pack with integrated air items. After extensive testing it has been air drop certified by the Airborne and Special Operations Test Directorate at Ft Bragg, NC. The pack is feature laden as you can see below, but a couple of items stick out. The back panel’s padding channels have been specially designed to allow the harness to be stowed out of the way during jumps. Additionally, a single-point release has been integrated into the bottom of the pack.
The new Sky, Sea & Land Tactical Drybag from Unleashed Tactical Equipment is designed specifically for Military Freefall Operations. The SSL Tactical Drybag is a very specialized piece of kit that stows in the bottom of the parachute container and accommodates the parachute, container and harness, helmet and oxygen equipment as well as any other ancillary items such as altimeter once the parachutist has landed. The integrated shoulder straps allow the parachutist to move his equipment off of the Drop Zone for cache including burial. The bag also features an air purge valve.
Naturally, it will be available from UTE’s US distributor Tidewater Tactical.
While traditionally the GoPro Hero has been considered a helmet cam, like so many others Eric Halberstadt realized it could be used in other ways as well. In this case, he attached it to his leg during a static line parachute jump. Eric makes demonstration jumps using WWII equipment as well as a professional TV commercial director of photography.
The GoPro Hero is widely recognized for its use in action sports. One of the huge draws is that it’s relatively inexpensive and with a variety of mounting solutions it can be adapted to any number of uses including attaching it to a rifle. In fact, the GoPro Hero is so small that there might even be room for a couple of them on the rail of your M4 allowing you to capture numerous perspectives. But probably the biggest selling point if the quality of the image. Just look at it, have you seen anything so clear? And all of you legs, make sure you bow down when you watch this video.
Natick has awarded BAE a contract for a unspecified number of Large Airborne MOLLE rucks. The packs which will be delivered in Coyote, will undergo testing by the US Marine Corps. The airborne pack is a modified version of the Large MOLLE intended for use by parachutists While no quantity of packs was specified in the award the number will be low as they are being used for testing and not fielding.
Many of you have probably heard of the Bonehead Military Free Fall helmet but Bonehead Composites actually offers several products designed specifically for the military parachutist. Produced initially as a special project, their M4 shroud brings a whole new meaning to jumping with exposed weapons. Designed for MFF operations, the clam shell design features a padded interior to protect delicate optics and laser devices. It allows you to jump with the shroud attached to the weapon yet still have full access to the pistol grip and trigger. Special configurations as well as other weapons can be accommodated contact Bonehead Composites for details.
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The T-11 parachute, also referred to as the Advanced Tactical Parachute System has already begun to replace the venerable T-10 with operational units. As Fort Benning’s Basic Airborne Course trains new parachutists, they too have have begun the transition to the new system. Students will continue to train with both since the transition to the T-11 will take about three years, but the class graduating last week was the first to have jumped the new parachute.
This PEO-Soldier video of a recent jump by the 18th Corps Staff gives you a good idea of the characteristics of the parachute.
One of the first things you will notice about the new canopy is its shape. Rather than the traditional conical shape of the T-10 the T-11 boasts 28% more surface area and assumes a somewhat square shape due to a modified version of a cross/cruciform. This results in a slower rate of descent and a softer landing (19 fps vice 24 fps). Additionally, the T-11 replaces not only the round canopy but the harness as well which is designed to displace opening shock forces of the reserve parachute equally along the long axis of the jumper’s body. While the T-10 relies on the Modified Improved Reserve Parachute System (MIRPS) which includes a standard T-10 reserve parachute canopy assembly integrated with a commercial deployment assistance device to throw the canopy out away from the jumper, the new T-11R is based on the British Low Level Parachute (LLP) aero-conical design that includes apex scoop pockets at the top of the reserve canopy and skirt assist lines at the system’s hem to promote fast opening of the reserve during low-speed malfunctions. Unlike MIRPS, the T-11R reserve uses an omni-directional, center-pull deployment system.
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Both the Ops-Core Ballistic and FAST helmets have been added to the US Air Force parachutist approved for use list which details equipment that have been certified for airborne operations. This means that they have passed an evaluation including helmet acceleration testing. Following the 1998 parachute fatality of Pararescueman SrA Sean McDermott, the Air Force has taken extra care to ensure that new air items are meticulously tested prior to approval.
Two caveats have been placed on use of the helmets. First, it cannot be jumped with Night Vision Devices unless criteria in MAJCOM standards are adhered to. Second, nothing may be mounted on the side rails during jumps except O2 mounting straps. Additionally, direction from the Air Staff indicates that the helmets must be properly fitted and MAJCOMs should seek contracted fit training.
