New Jump Pilot!

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chrislyons5

Filing Flight Plan
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Mar 1, 2015
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chrislyons5
I just got hired on as a skydiving jump pilot in Texas and was wondering if anyone had some advice for a rookie just getting in to the game. I have about 300 hours and a commercial license with an instrument endorsement. I'm going to be flying a 1963 C-182E and a 1957 C-182. I'll be landing on a dirt runway and flying long hours. I super excited about this new opportunity and any advice would be greatly appreciated.
 
chrislyons5 said:
I just got hired on as a skydiving jump pilot in Texas and was wondering if anyone had some advice for a rookie just getting in to the game. I have about 300 hours and a commercial license with an instrument endorsement. I'm going to be flying a 1963 C-182E and a 1957 C-182. I'll be landing on a dirt runway and flying long hours. I super excited about this new opportunity and any advice would be greatly appreciated.
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Welcome to POA! Where in the great state of Texas will you be working?
 
Welcome to the forum,you'll be building time while being paid,should be fun. Enjoy.
 
Congratulations! I recommend making a tandem jump or going further with jump training. It helps to know what the tandem masters/passengers and sport jumpers experience and also how much it hurts to be on their knees after a few minutes waiting on the plane to be in position.

Good luck!

David
 
chrislyons5 said:
I just got hired on as a skydiving jump pilot in Texas and was wondering if anyone had some advice for a rookie just getting in to the game. I have about 300 hours and a commercial license with an instrument endorsement. I'm going to be flying a 1963 C-182E and a 1957 C-182. I'll be landing on a dirt runway and flying long hours. I super excited about this new opportunity and any advice would be greatly appreciated.
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Don't run into the "meat bombs" in your hurry to land and pick up another load. :no: :D
 
i don't know much about it but I would recommend that you don't do this
or this
 
Carry a hook knife and a razor-sharp retractable utility knife. Hopefully you'll never need either one. Have fun.
 
Adding one more thing, learn how AAD's work, the different versions and their respective firing altitudes and descent rates. You would not one to go off in the cockpit during a descent with a jumper that did not go for whatever reason.

David
 
chrislyons5 said:
I just got hired on as a skydiving jump pilot in Texas and was wondering if anyone had some advice for a rookie just getting in to the game. I have about 300 hours and a commercial license with an instrument endorsement. I'm going to be flying a 1963 C-182E and a 1957 C-182. I'll be landing on a dirt runway and flying long hours. I super excited about this new opportunity and any advice would be greatly appreciated.
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Make sure no ones back is next to the door when you open it, if there is a loose drogue it can get sucked out and result in 'a bad day'.

Keep track of your meat bombs in your descent, losing track and hitting one will result in a bad day.

Land either well before or after your jumpers. Having both converging at the ground at the same time can lead to a bad day.

Wear a parachute when flying jumpers. There are several things that can cause a bad day where you need to follow your jumpers out of the plane. Since you are going to wear it, if you are not yet a jumper, you may want to get a few jumps in for practice. It's kinda like spins, the first couple of times are a mind ****, after that it gets pretty chill.
 
flhrci said:
Concur. But since he is flying a 182, he has nice legal choice any ay.

David
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I never understood the rules of when you didn't have to, the DZs I flew for, as well as my own, insistence was to always wear a chute.
 
Any DZ where the DZO doesn't insist you wear a rig, not somewhere you want to work, or somewhere thst pays industry standard.

Any DZ where the TIs even debate pulling your mag keys, same deal. DZ I worked at, if a TI pulled the mag keys, he'd be fired on the spot and burned in the industry, he'd never get work at any real (see pays well) DZ again.
 
As the jumpers get out, watch for drogue chutes deploying. If you see one come out into the slipstream, immediately stomp on the right rudder for all you're worth in the hopes the tail doesn't get hit. (Don't ask me how I know!)

Know that students do strange things. Quite often they'll latch on to you with death grips. If that happens, simply point it out to the Jumpmaster and they'll remove the offending hand. Knees, shoulders, seatbelts and arms are all good targets. The arm is the worst.

Also know that sometimes as students get out, the fuel selector can be bumped into the off position.

If you happen to fly a rare 182 with a carburetor, use carb heat on the way down. You will ice up.

Have fun, but don't let the jumpers coerce you into doing anything stupid.
 
Anymouse said:
As the jumpers get out, watch for drogue chutes deploying. If you see one come out into the slipstream, immediately stomp on the right rudder for all you're worth in the hopes the tail doesn't get hit. (Don't ask me how I know!)

Know that students do strange things. Quite often they'll latch on to you with death grips. If that happens, simply point it out to the Jumpmaster and they'll remove the offending hand. Knees, shoulders, seatbelts and arms are all good targets. The arm is the worst.

Also know that sometimes as students get out, the fuel selector can be bumped into the off position.

If you happen to fly a rare 182 with a carburetor, use carb heat on the way down. You will ice up.

Have fun, but don't let the jumpers coerce you into doing anything stupid.
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:confused: All the pre restart 182s had a carb.
 
PPC1052 said:
I'm curious. What's this about?
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Never mind. I figured it out. I would have zero sense of humor about that. In fact, I am sure I would physically beat down the person that did that to me. Not kidding, either.
 
PPC1052 said:
I'm curious. What's this about?
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We left the mag key in the plane but turned off the mags obviously. For quicker turnaround. I think the DZ owner would chew someone's rear for taking the keys. No one did that so far as I know.

David
 
flhrci said:
We left the mag key in the plane but turned off the mags obviously. For quicker turnaround. I think the DZ owner would chew someone's rear for taking the keys. No one did that so far as I know.

David
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I believe the issue was with jumpers taking the keys while the plane was not necessarily in its parking spot.

Seriously, if someone did this to me, they would be banned from the DZ, or I would stop flying as soon as I got on the ground. That would cost the DZ a bit of money and PO all the other jumpers.

For the record, I've never actually heard a first, or even second hand account of this actually happening.
 
flhrci said:
All two 182's I have flown have carb's.

David
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For the record, I've flown 6 of them. Only one had the carb. However, one did have a mogas STC believe it or not.

The carb'd 182 also had a beefier engine in it. 330HP and it climbed like a bat out of hell!! N9996B
 
These replies are awesome! James331, I visited those sites and the guy who runs the FB page added me and had first hand knowledge of the JZ I'll be working at. He had some great advice for me. As for an of the jumpers taking my keys, I would throat punch them! More advice is always welcome and I will post updates on how the job goes.
 
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