| THE STORY OF SKYDIVING
From times immemorial, man has dreamt of conquering the elements with which he has had to struggle from day one of his existence. Winds, rains, gravity, sky, sunlight all these elements had dominated his life for too long and too much. In pursuit of his dream to overpower the elements, he has gone under water to unfathomable depths. He has shattered the sound barrier trusting himself to metal and his own ingenuity. He has also roared through the very lonely and inhospitable outer space at unimaginable speeds. The art of skydiving belongs to this intrepid spirit of mankind that has known no bounds. Skydiving is actually a human activity beyond the terrestrial edge of routine human existence. It is a step into the blue away from relative safety of an airborne platform. This step is a challenge to gravity. It is also a challenge to the birds and their monopoly over the skies. However short it may be, but it is also a divine existence high above the mother earth wherein Man is the master of is own destiny.
Skydiving is basically an art of performing in the air using human body as a tool of the indomitable human spirit. Since the dawn of human civilization man has always dreamt of flying free like a bird. When he built aero planes his desire to defy gravity was partially fulfilled. To achieve complete and unadulterated freedom in air, one fine day, he decided to step out into the blue. And from this bold and imaginative step into the blue, was born the exciting sport of skydiving. The sports begins when a jumper carrying a packed parachute strapped to his back, jumps out of an platform and begins to free fall towards ground under the pull of omnipresent gravity. By manipulating his limbs and body while falling at speeds down of 176 feet per second, a jumper can indulge in maneuvers with absolute freedom. At this speed, his limbs act much like wings. The air blowing over his body helps him to perform controlled maneuvers. By changing body position and profile, a jumper can turn, loop, roll horizontally, streak towards earth in delta position and all this, while falling free.
The activity of free fall has two distinct dimensions; viz military and sports oriented parachuting. In military or combat oriented free fall, gliding parachutes are used to penetrate deep inside enemy territory from very great heights is a very challenging task. In sports skydiving, a jumper jumps because he enjoys doing it & others enjoy watching him do it. In skydiving, there are many sub-disciplines like Style, Relative work, Canopy relative work, Accuracy in landings, Sky surfing etc to name a few. All these activities are performed above 3000 feet which is generally the parachute opening height and hence are not visible to the naked eye observing from the ground. Only the accuracy in landing can be appreciated as jumpers come to land on target with pinpoint accuracy, in a sand-filled pit. In style and sky-surfing a jumper performs pre-defined body maneuvers before opening of his parachute and is judged by the time, finish and grace with which these activities are performed much like the gymnastics event on ground. In canopy relative work, jumpers open their parachutes immediately on exit and then handle them skillfully to link up with one another to make various canopy formations. Some of these formations can be flown as a single unit right to the ground. But undoubtedly the "Ultimate" in skydiving is the activity of relative work in which jumpers exit independent of each other and then join up with each other in air to make various formations. This requires excellent reflexes, quick thinking, disciplined mind, mutual trust and above all perfect co-ordination of both body and mind.
- A parachute by definition is a device that retards the speed of a falling body. In early days of eighteenth century, all types of materials like canvas, silk, cotton etc were used to made canopies. Intrepid pioneers risked their lives jumping these contraptions from all available raised platforms like cliffs, buildings, tall bridges, balloons etc. Essentially the world of parachuting for first two hundred years was an era of adventure loving mad men hell bent upon stepping over and beyond newer thresholds of human knowledge and physical limits. With the advent of heavier-than-air, aircraft particularly the military, the world of parachuting underwent a qualitative change. An aviator flying at great heights and speeds needed an escape route should his machine become disabled in mid air. The modern parachute designs were born as a result of this quest by aviation scientists to provide a reliable and fail proof escape to an aviator in distress. The sport para-designs of today are sleek aerodynamic designs made basically from nylon and offering a jumper the luxury of effecting pin point landings in drop zones as small as tennis courts.
ABOUT COMPETITION DIRECTOR
PARACHUTING
- Wing Commander Ramesh Chandra Tripathi VM is the competition Director for the Parachuting event in MWG-07. He got into parachuting in 1989 as a Parachute Jump Instructor and has since then excelled in the sport at National and International level. He has won Gold and Bronze medals in the National championship and is a National Judge as well. Presently the officer is appointed as Director, Indian Air Force Adventure,
- He is a recipient of most prestigious and heighest National Civil Award in the adventure field which is at par with Arjuna award. An adventurous and hard core outdoor loving person, his second passion was fulfilled when he created history when he became the first air warrior to climb Mt Everest.
- An apt person to be a Competition Director, he is confident of sailing the parachuting event in MWG-07 in most befitting and professional manner.
UPDATE FOR PARTICIPANTS
BRIEF ON PARACHUTING FOR BROCHURE
‘Parachuting’ is one of the most spectacular and exhilarating events happening in Air Force Station Hakimpet during MWG scheduled from 14 to 21Oct 07. The competition involves two disciplines of parachuting i,e ‘Accuracy’ and ‘Formation Skydive’. There will be 240 athletes including 50 women from 39 different countries participating in this most exciting parachuting event.
The competition is planned with the following aim:
- Develop and strengthen international relations in the field of international military co-operation.
- Widely promulgate parachuting as a vital asset of character training and education of military personnel
- Accumulate international experience in organising and holding parachuting competitions
- Develop specific physical qualities and moral and psychological stability of members of the armed forces in making parachute jumps and lastly
To Determine best athletes and teams among service members of national armies.
Unlike other sports, this is the first time that the Parachuting Competition at International level is being held in India. Though Parachuting made a modest beginning in India in 1984, it was more or less military oriented for the airborne operations. Finally, Sports parachuting as an offshoot of Military parachuting was conceived and conceptualised in India in 1987 by creation of the first sports skydiving team ‘Akash Ganga’. Slowly, the sport gained popularity and more teams by name ‘Air Devils’, ‘Dare Devils’(Army team) etc were formed. The Sport was also opened for civilian’s participation as well but in a limited way. Since then, with limited resources and platform for skydiving, India has been able to mark its presence felt in International arena.
India has conducted National skydiving championships and participated in the first world air games, world conventions and many other parachuting events abroad. Our able skydivers have jumped in South Pole and North Pole and made many National and International records. Today we have a very fine and professional team representing India in the Parachuting event in MWG-07.
Each country is supposed to field one team (male and/or female) consisting of five competitors and one cameraman including one qualified judge which is mandatory requirement. The competitors will compete in following two events -
Event 1 - Accuracy - Team for Male and Female (10 rounds)
Accuracy - Individual for Male and Female ( 8 rounds)
Event 2 - FS - Team event for Male and Female(8 rounds)
The competition will be conducted as per CISM Sports parachuting regulations 2007 Edition
Accuracy competition involves Jumping from a height of 3,500Ft above ground level and then manoeuvreing the parachute to hit a disc of 03cm radius. The point of first impact is then measured electronically from this centre point. The maximum distance measured is only 16 cm. The lowest scores of the best four competitors out of the five team members is considered for calculating the result.
Similarly, in Formation Skydive(FS) event, team of four best jumpers will jump from a height of 10,000 Ft above the ground level and will perform predefined manoeuvres within the limited time frame of 30 secs or less. The manoeuvres are recorded by the team’s cameraman who also jumps along with the team. The recording is then seen and evaluated by the panel of Judges on ground. Team performing maximum correct manoeuvres will score maximum points.
The winners are determined as follows-
Individual accuracy
The competitor with the lowest total shall be "(year) World Military Parachuting Champion in ‘Individual Accuracy’.
Team accuracy
Standings are obtained by adding the four best results of the team on each of the jumps. The team with the lowest total shall be World Military Parachuting Champion in Team Accuracy".
Team FS
Standings are obtained by adding the scores of the team on each of the jumps. The team with the highest score shall be " World Military Parachuting Champion in formation skydiving".
Team Overall
The team with the lowest total of rankings in both the events (team accuracy and formation skydive) shall be " World Military Parachuting Champion in Team Overall ".
Air Force Station Hakimpet is all prepared to take on the task and to provide world class sports facilities together with a mixture of cultural and fun events to make sure that all our visitors enjoy their stay at Hyderabad and participate in the games in the true sportsmen spirit.
The games for us are much more than a sporting event. This will leave a legacy of world – class sporting facilities for local people and elite athletes and will boost Hyderabad’s international profile. And they will do so for years into the future.
Local people have already played a full role in helping to deliver the Games and the facilities they will use. They are looking forward to extending to you the traditional hospitality for which our city is famous and the rich diversity of our communities is reflected in the close connections we have with many countries from the CISM.
CHAMPIONSHIP ORGANISING COMMITTEE-
PARACHUTING AT HAKIMPET
Chairman Air Cmde Naseem Akhtar SC
Venue Director Wg Cdr MIK Reddy
Meet Director Wg Cdr R C Tripathi VM
FEW MORE INPUTS ON SKYDIVING
1. From times immemorial, man has dreamt of conquering the elements with which he has had to struggle from day one of his existence. Winds, rains, gravity, sky, sunlight all these elements had dominated his life for too long and too much. In pursuit of his dream to overpower the elements, he has gone under water to unfathomable depths. He has shattered the sound barrier trusting himself to metal and his own ingenuity. He has also roared through the very lonely and inhospitable outer space at unimaginable speeds. The art of skydiving belongs to this intrepid spirit of mankind that has known no bounds. Skydiving is actually a human activity beyond the terrestrial edge of routine human existence. It is a step into the blue away from relative safety of an airborne platform. This step is a challenge to gravity. It is also a challenge to the birds and their monopoly over the skies. However short it may be, but it is also a divine existence high above the mother earth wherein Man is the master of is own destiny.
2. Skydiving is basically an art of performing in the air using human body as a tool of the indomitable human spirit. Since the dawn of human civilization man has always dreamt of flying free like a bird. When he built aero planes his desire to defy gravity was partially fulfilled. To achieve complete and unadulterated freedom in air, one fine day, he decided to step out into the blue. And from this bold and imaginative step into the blue, was born the exciting sport of skydiving. The sports begins when a jumper carrying a packed parachute strapped to his back, jumps out of an platform and begins to free fall towards ground under the pull of omnipresent gravity. By manipulating his limbs and body while falling at speeds down of 176 feet per second, a jumper can indulge in manoeuvres with absolute freedom. At this speed, his limbs act much like wings. The air blowing over his body helps him to perform controlled manoeuvres. By changing body position and profile, a jumper can turn, loop, roll horizontally, streak towards earth in delta position and all this, while falling free.
3. The activity of free fall has two distinct dimensions; viz military and sports oriented parachuting. In military or combat oriented free fall, gliding parachutes are used to penetrate deep inside enemy territory from very great heights is a very challenging task. In sports skydiving, a jumper jumps because he enjoys doing it & others enjoy watching him do it. In skydiving, there are many sub-disciplines like Style, Relative work, Canopy relative work, Accuracy in landings, Sky surfing etc to name a few. All these activities are performed above 3000 feet which is generally the parachute opening height and hence are not visible to the naked eye observing from the ground. Only the accuracy in landing can be appreciated as jumpers come to land on target with pinpoint accuracy, in a sand-filled pit. In style and sky-surfing a jumper performs pre-defined body manoeuvres before opening of his parachute and is judged by the time, finish and grace with which these activities are performed much like the gymnastics event on ground. In canopy relative work, jumpers open their parachutes immediately on exit and then handle them skilfully to link up with one another to make various canopy formations. Some of these formations can be flown as a single unit right to the ground. But undoubtedly the "Ultimate" in skydiving is the activity of relative work in which jumpers exit independent of each other and then join up with each other in air to make various formations. This requires excellent reflexes, quick thinking, disciplined mind, mutual trust and above all perfect co-ordination of both body and mind.
- Essentially the world of parachuting for first two hundred years was an era of adventure loving mad men hell bent upon stepping over and beyond newer thresholds of human knowledge and physical limits. With the advent of heavier-than-air, aircraft particularly the military, the world of parachuting underwent a qualitative change. An aviator flying at great heights and speeds needed an escape route should his machine become disabled in mid air. The modern parachute designs were born as a result of this quest by aviation scientists to provide a reliable and fail proof escape to an aviator in distress. A parachute by definition is a device that retards the speed of a falling body. In early days of eighteenth century, all types of materials like canvas, silk, cotton etc were used to made canopies. Intrepid pioneers risked their lives jumping these contraptions from all available raised platforms like cliffs, buildings, tall bridges, balloons etc.
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