Kansas State University - Royal Purple Yearbook (Manhattan, KS)

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continued from Page 15 FREE FALLING the jump After new students completed the classwork and hands-on training, they were ready for their first jumps. The first jump was by static line — a strap attached to the pilot chute and the plane. As the jumper fell away from the plane, the strap started canopy deployment by pulling out the pilot chute. The pilot chute then pulled out the main canopy. This process allowed jumpers three to four seconds of freefall before the main canopy opened and slowed descent. After the canopy opened, an experienced jumper on the ground directed the students to the landing zone at Wamego City Airport via a radio installed in the students ' helmets. After the jump was completed, the jumper recieved a logbook where each jump could be recorded. With information about her first jump recorded, Emig looks over her parachute jump logbook. The logbook included information about each jump, like location, altitude, jump aircraft, date, wind conditions, jump master and notes about the jump. Emig smiles back at jump master Brian Correll, junior in mechanical engineering, while waiting for the plane to reach jump altitude. Students ' first jumps were from 3,000 feet. 16 student life

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free FALLING following a student ' s first jump PHOTO STORY BY CLIF the class Heather Emig, senior in diatetics, received sky-diving lessons from her brother and sister for her 22nd birthday. The lessons started with four hours of classwork and ended 3,000 feet above Wamego City in a Cessna 182. The 18 class members began their sky-diving experience in the K-State Student Union, learning the basics, such as parachute terminology, how to operate the parachute and emergency procedures. Emig listens to instructor Jesse Magana explain how to identify the landing zone from the air class the morning of Oct. 3. Before sky diving students are ready to jump, they must practice landing. In the landing zone at Wamego City Airport, the group practiced parachute landing falls, or PLFs. PLFs, simulated an actual landing. Sky divers took a couple steps, jumped into the air, landed on their feet, rolled to their knees, hips and then onto their backs to avoid injury. 15 sky diving

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fast forward to CD-ROM Emig looks back at Correll waiting for the final command to jump. After crawling out onto the wing support, students waited for the jump master to say dot, at which time the student looked at the X taped on the wing directly above their head. While looking at the X, the student let go of the plane. Before sky diving students are allowed to jump, they must take a test covering all the information in class about parachutes, their functions and emergency procedures. The students formed a circle around a trampoline in the hangar to complete the test. 17 sky diving