Articles
Filming Canopy Formations
1: Introduction:
2: Equipment:
3: Canopies:
4: Packing:
5: Flying with the formations:
6: Visualisation and anticipation:
Introduction:
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I was a founding member of the Canopy Rotations Team Zero Tolerance which later became Cross Keys Zero Tolerance and I also have limited experience in 8 way sequential but my specialist field of knowledge is canopy rotations. Zero Tolerance were the British Senior National Champions for several years and disbanded in 1999 to pursue other directions within the sport.
The information in this article is not intended as a comprehensive or exhaustive guide to competitive Canopy Formation filming but should be viewed as a foundation for the skills required to safely film the discipline.
It might be an obvious statement to make but if you are not confident flying your canopy close to other canopies then DO NOT attempt to film Canopy Formations. I would strongly advise that you participate in one of the BPA CF coaching road shows before you consider filming CF (Canopy formations) so that you have a basic understanding of how to fly your canopy. On these courses you will also learn how to pack your canopy for a consistent on heading openings which can also benefit other aspects of your skydiving career. If you are unable to participate in a CF coaching road show then why not try one of Brain Vacher's Safe canopy Flight School courses when he's visiting a DZ near you.
Canopy Formation flying is one of the most physically demanding disciplines in our sport and requires a high degree of physical fitness for the body to cope with the demands of working in a rarified atmosphere. With a typical exit altitude of 7000 feet and a working time of two minutes it can be extremely demanding on the body compounded by the lack of oxygen at altitude and the physical exertion used throughout the decent consistently controlling and positioning the canopy.
The main Competitive CF disciplines are 4 way rotations, 4 way sequential and 8 way sequential but can also include events such as 4 and 8 way speed stacks. To film CF safely you have to understand the dynamics of the formations you film and also have an understand how to fly your canopy in relation to differing formations.
Equipment:
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As the camera person on the team unless briefed you will not be docking on the formation(s) but it is advisable to wear clothing that covers exposed skin, lines will burn exposed skin so if you intend to participate in CF then you need to protect yourself and reduce the possibility of injury that can occur during close contact CF. Serious CF jumpers will wear a specially designed suit which will have a form of bootie and the contact surface areas will be made of a Kevlar type cloth. This makes the suit hard wearing in the areas that have contact with the lines and also helps lines slip off during the odd wrap that occasionally occurs. Depending on the climate may determine what clothing you would normally wear for other skydiving disciplines. There will be a temperature difference between ground level and exit altitude, remember you will be deploying your canopy as soon as you leave the aircraft. If the temperature is -2°C between 7000 feet and 5000 feet but it is 10°C at ground level then your clothing has to be suitable for the conditions at altitude not ground level.
No matter how hot it is gloves are essential to prevent injury to your hands because throughout the decent you will be using your risers more than your control toggles to adjust the flight path and position of your canopy in relation to the formation
BPA regulation 3.4. All FAI ‘A' Certificate (Red) parachutists and above are required to carry a serviceable knife about their person, or on their equipment. The knife should be readily accessible.
The small orange plastic hook knives that you see the majority of jumpers wearing with their rigs fulfils this regulation but would you consider it to be a suitable knife if you had to cut several lines or a riser in a dynamic incident? In my opinion the only suitable material for a knife is metal or a metal alloy. There are several metal knives available specifically designed for skydiving, they cost a few pounds but how much do you value your life?
As a camera person one good knife is sufficient but if you intend to participate in the formation whether you are filming or not then consider carrying more that one knife and attaching a lanyard so that if a knife is dropped during a wrap at least it is still retrievable. Position one knife high on your body in an area such as your chest strap and one knife low so that if you are restricted in your movements during a wrap you have access to at least one knife.
If your helmet is suitable for filming Formation Freefall or Freeflying then it will probably be suitable for filming Canopy Formations. You have to be aware of location of everybody in the sky because of the proximity of the canopies during CF so your camera equipment should not restrict your ability to look around under canopy, spatial awareness is paramount for your safety and that of the team. Review the design of ancillary equipment attached to your helmet, can risers or lines snag sights, cameras, sidemnounts etc? Do you have a single point cutaway fitted to your helmet? If not, why not?
Canopies:
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Competitive CF participants use canopies specifically designed for the purpose so your choice of canopy is extremely important, elliptical canopies are not designed for sub terminal openings or flying slow in turbulence behind a canopy formation. It's not just the flight characteristics of a CF canopy that differ but also the method of deployment.
CF canopy's are required to open quickly and on heading. To achieve this, the canopy is not packed into a deployment bag but is equipped with a tail pocket that is sewn to the tail of the canopy. The tail pocket retrains part of the canopy allowing the cells of the canopy to be open and presented to the relative wind with the lines free stowed in the pocket. To slider is constructed of a mesh material similar to the material on the base of your pilot chute and this also assist with a rapid opening. This type of deploying method is referred to as lines first deployment and is specifically designed for sub terminal openings.
Canopy's used by a 4 and 8 way CF teams will normally be identical in size and deployment method. The jumpers will all be identical weights with the lighter jumpers using weight belts like their FS counterparts, i.e. if the heaviest person is 180lbs ALL jumpers will be weighted to 180lbs. Canopy's used on larger formations will be matched to their position within the formation rather than the individual.
Other essential items of equipment used by CF jumpers which will also assist you as a dedicated CF camera jumper are CF toggles. These steering toggles are larger than the standard toggle and allow you to transition between front and rear risers without putting any input into the canopy through the toggles.
CF jumpers control their canopy's using risers and toggles however, front riser loops are not suitable for CF so the jumpers use a material known as ‘Vet Wrap'™ This is a bandage material from the equestrian world and is used to hold dressings onto the legs wounds of horses. The material has an adhesives coating and when ‘Vet Wrap'™ is applied to the front risers it provides the jumper with a positive grip and during a front riser input.
Packing:
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As camera for the team you will also will be exiting and deploying close to the team so you too must ensure that your canopy opens on heading, 180° off heading could result in a collision or wrap. There are many ways to pack a canopy that will affect its opening therefore, understanding what you are doing when you pack a canopy is important. Packing the canopy for CF is similar to packing for any other discipline with some subtle differences.
Every time you pack take the time to make sure ALL the twists are out of the control lines, a couple of twist in one control line is sufficient to make the canopy turn during deployment. The centre cell should be open with the tail of the canopy placed beside the ends cells not wrapped around the nose as it would normally be in conventional pro packing. With the centre cell proud of the tail the moment the centre cell is presented to the relative wind it will start to inflate the canopy from the centre outwards.
If you do not have a tail pocket on your canopy then I would advise free stowing the canopy however, this may be scary territory to some and if you have never free stowed a canopy before ask an expert. If the thought of jumping a free stowed canopy is not an option then stow your canopy in the deployment bag as normal but consider free stowing the lines so that the deployment bag is free to lift from the tray paying the lines out from the tray as the bag deploys.
Exits:
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Headings are important to CF Teams and this starts with the exit an there are two types of exits that a team may use. The first is the standard exit with the aircraft flown into wind as is normal practice for other disciplines but the exit point would be deeper because of the higher opening altitude. The second type of exit is a specialised exit that was preferred by my old rotations team, Zero Tolerance. The aircraft is flown down wind and the team exit up wind of the Drop Zone so that they are always facing the DZ under canopy. There are substantial benefits to using the down wind run in type exit. In Sequential CF the pilot is normally always the same individual so they will always be aware of the visual reference used to maintain the heading. During canopy rotations the pilot of the formation is constantly changing with every rotation performed and therefore, all team members need the same visual reference to maintain the heading. The DZ is the most recognisable visual reference to use for all the team. If you are filming a rotation team who use this type of exit get used to some very deep spots.
Like other skydiving disciplines the working time starts the moment the team leaves the aircraft and how the team exits will depend on your position during exit. When I was competing with Cross Keys Zero Tolerance we used to exit together as one group rather like a free flown four way FS exit therefore, the camera man would be positioned inside the aircraft forward of the door and film the exit leaving as the last person deployed. When we jumped with Team X doing 8 way sequential we effectively did an individual hop and pop exit so the camera man (PD Smith) would film from the rear float step and leave as the last man deployed.
During training the team will want to see the exit so that they can critique their individual exit performance and deployments making judgments on deployment headings. For competition the judges need to see the exit to be able to score the team.
As with any deployment how you present your body to the relative wind is important. A simple ‘hop and pop' is all you have to master, shoulders level with the horizon and your visual reference should be looking forward with the line of flight maintaining aircraft heading. The packing method you have used will provide a positive on heading deployment but be prepared to act quickly if things don't go as planned. Let the canopy open before you take control, DO NOT instantly take control using the control toggles but use the risers to change your heading. By using the risers to turn the canopy you will have a reduced airspeed and slower descent rate, using the the toggles to make heading corrections increases your airspeed and decent rate.
Flying with the formations:
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After deployment you will be higher and in front of the team so you should only have to do a 180° riser turn to locate them. Identify the base that with a competitive team will probably already be together, Adrian (Spotty) Bowles and I would normally have the pin and base together in about ten seconds.
The base sets the heading so that is your destination, locate the remaining team members and plan to arrive at your destination which is at the rear of the formation without encroaching on the airspace of others and DO NOT fly across the front of any formation.
Using your risers and control toggles position your canopy behind the formation, with a rotation stack you should be positioned high usually between the pin and third and this should give you a good visual frame of the rotation stack. Make sure you are far enough back to prevent conflict and close enough to capture the action.
The ideal position is behind the stack which will mean that you are flying in the wake turbulence of the formation and this will effect how your canopy flies. To maintain your position in the wake turbulence you will have to use your front risers and as you enter the wake turbulence this will cause the canopy to sink as it begins dive. If you start to get too close to the action then let up a little on your risers and the wake turbulence will start to push you back, let up too much and it'll spit you out. If it all looks like it's going horribly wrong fast let go of the risers and apply some input with the control toggles and it'll really kick you out and up into clean air.
Visualisation and anticipation:
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All canopy formations have differing flying characteristics that are determined by size shape. A canopy stack, one canopy on top of the other will have a reduced forward airspeed and increased descent rate when compared to a single canopy whereas a diamond formation will normally have an increased forward airspeed and increased descent rate.
Rotations are fast and dynamic with a constant descent rate. Sequential has a slower pace but has changes in airspeed and descent rate so just as you would do with your FS counterparts walk through the dive with the team so that you know the sequence of formations to be built and this will enable you to anticipate any change in the flight characteristics of the formations. If the formation requires the flying of pairs then just like a block transition in FS you need to keep the pairs in frame to score the team.
Occasionally things go funky and everything happens fast. Be prepared to get out of the way. ‘Wraps' (entanglements) will drop out of the sky so assuming that you are not in the way you are safe. In the majority of cases a ‘wrap' can be resolved with out the need to cutaway. Keep filming, it's useful for debrief purposes and provides entertainment for the bar tapes!
Following a cutaway avoid contact with the discarded main(s), remember you are part of that team so assist and watch where the free bag lands and the main. Injuries do occasionally occur during wraps. I have sustained facial injuries twice and been knocked unconscious once during ‘wraps' so it is advisable to follow and land with any team member who is on a reserve especially if it's on off landing to make sure they haven't sustained any debilitating injuries during the melee.
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To be continued
Created June 2005