Airdropping in Oregon

[NIN]

My first husband's family were missionaries in Brazil back in the '60's. There wan't anywhere for the mail plane to land, so the pilot devised a bucket method to deliver and pick up mail.

Basiccally he flew in a circle over a clearing and lowered a covered bucket to just above ground level. I don't know the height/diameter ratio, but when the bucket could be reached by someone on the ground, it was almost stationary.

I suppose it had a little spin, but nothing that prevented someone from the village from retreiving the mail packet and replacing it with their out-going.

I'm sure there are pilots around that know how this was done.

I've heard of that. Basically, you fly in a fairly gentle circle and the bucket remains in the middle as you pay out the line.  If you're skilled (and the people who do this a lot truly have to be) the bucket winds up "hovering" in basically one spot to the point where it can be landed, the payloads exchanged, and hauled back to the aircraft.

BTW, that device from Paraflite is no more complex than a WDI streamer.  Looks like it would fit out a window.

I volunteer to test. I'm quite good at hitting a ground target from an aircraft in flight with a totally ballistic object....

[SJFedor]

If they ordered the Airvans to NINs specs with the jump door installed etc... you would be all set. 

• The door on the Airvan can be opened in flight (it slides forward). No jump door needed.
• Per the POH, the aircraft is limited to 90kts with the door open.
• I'm comfortable working inside aircraft in flight with the door open (moreso if I'm wearing a rig)
• I am also comfortable working outside aircraft in flight for short periods of time (see the aforementioned requirement for a rig)
• Sounds like just the thing that I need to be helping CAP test

100kts w/ the door open (at least that's what my training material says from my GA-8 training). And CAP prohibits us from opening the door in flight right now, unless there's a VERY good reason.

However, doing these drops to get survival gear into victims sure would be a good reason.

Maybe we can drop the ARCHER units while we're at it...

[RiverAux]

I can sort of see a need for this sort of thing in certain areas of the country.  But seeing as how you're probably not going to have one on every plane, you'd have to either return to base to get it or launch another plane to bring it in.  Never mind the several hours it would probably take to get someone to approve the action in the first place.  In that time, a helicopter can probably make the scene and do the drop anyway. 

[NIN]

100kts w/ the door open (at least that's what my training material says from my GA-8 training). And CAP prohibits us from opening the door in flight right now, unless there's a VERY good reason.

I'll take your reading of the training material over my faulty remembery of the POH.

However, doing these drops to get survival gear into victims sure would be a good reason.

Maybe we can drop the ARCHER units while we're at it...

Skydive Arizona sponsors a thing called "Junk Day" where they huck all kinds of odd crap out of their Skyvan from 13-14 grand.  An old Honda smacking the desert floor at a couple hundred miles per hour is ... magical.

I volunteer to do a 2-way with an Archer system.  Just don't expect me to hang onto it come deployment time.

[Gunner C]

If they ordered the Airvans to NINs specs with the jump door installed etc... you would be all set. 

• The door on the Airvan can be opened in flight (it slides forward). No jump door needed.
• Per the POH, the aircraft is limited to 90kts with the door open.
• I'm comfortable working inside aircraft in flight with the door open (moreso if I'm wearing a rig)
• I am also comfortable working outside aircraft in flight for short periods of time (see the aforementioned requirement for a rig)
• Sounds like just the thing that I need to be helping CAP test

I haven't been on the outside of an aircraft (in flight) since Nov '95.  The seating is much more comfortable inside. 

I'll have to dig up my favorite JM picture - hanging (actually pushing) out the door of a C-130 looking for the drop zone and hanging onto the door jam.  I never got a picture of me JM'ing a HALO or HAHO.  No matter: the O₂ mask covered up my manly good looks.