[longerthoughts]

>Not that watching the safety video would have helped in this case, as the instructor was not properly trained and vetted in the first place.

The article is a little vague about the failure but I'm a skydiver and this might not be the instructor's fault. I know that sounds insane but hear me out.

The article says "main and reserve parachutes had tangled, preventing either from opening". This could mean a few things:

1. Neither chute was ever deployed - "total malfunction" on main and reserve where they're both stuck in the container (backpack thing holding the parachute).

An instructor following perfect protocol with a poorly packed reserve would have died here, and they likely did not pack the reserve themselves. Reserve chutes are packed by a master rigger who's required to apply a seal and update a little paper record on each rig indicating when it was packed and by whom. These are meant to be checked before you're allowed to get on a plane. Reserves are (thankfully) rarely opened until they're due to be repacked based on time. There's overlap between master riggers and instructors who handle tandem jumps, but the reserve was most likely not packed by that instructor.

2. Main deployed but has a "partial malfunction" (out but not fully open), reserve then deployed and tangles with the main.

This would be the instructors fault - in this case they should cut away the main before deploying the reserve.

3. Main has a "total malfunction" where it doesn't come out at all, instructor deploys reserve, then main deploys late and tangles with the reserve.

This one is inconclusive but probably not the instructor's fault. Protocol here is don't waste time cutting your main because you're falling fast with no drag from a partially deployed chute and the main is unlikely to ever open. The reason it could still be the instructors fault is if they had a chance to cut away the main after it came out and failed to do so before they tangled.

[mikhailfranco]

I did a tandem freefall jump that had a "partial malfunction".

The square canopy had one end closed off by lines looped over the top of the chute, perhaps 75% was still inflated. The instructor decided to keep the main chute.

There was still significant drag, but no steering on the closed side, so we just spiralled into the ground at relatively high speed. The wind calculation was correct, so we hit a soft ploughed field.

Needless to say - we survived :)

[WalterBright]

> no drag from a partially deployed chute

As I recall, free fall is about 120 mph, while a tangled chute can cut it to 60 mph. I know this from a newspaper article about a man who survived a tangled chute fall onto pavement.

[RealityVoid]

These are not hard numbers. The velocity can vary quite a bit in free fall and depending on parachute state when tangled I'm sure that can greatly vary as well.

But yes, a partial deploy will slow you down somewhat.

And mildly related there's this website about free fall survival that I find fascinating:

https://www.greenharbor.com/fffolder/ffresearch.html

[davidwritesbugs]

Yup. If you get a partial "mal" and have a "bag of washing" over your head, as we call it in UK, your terminal velocity can drop to the point where you can survive, but you'll be all busted up at best. It happens.

[Scoundreller]

> Main deployed but has a "partial malfunction" (out but not fully open), reserve then deployed and tangles with the main. This would be the instructors fault - in this case they should cut away the main before deploying the reserve.

I’ve done a “solo” skydive where you jump out with 2 instructors and then they pull the line and you’re on your own. As a part of the training, we just had one motion (if I’m remembering right) to jettison the main and switch to reserve. Is that a potential configuration or do I have it wrong?

[longerthoughts]

Yep you’re describing an RSL - it’s a line that should deploy the reserve as the main gets cut away (although good practice to pull the reserve handle anyway as a precaution).

In my hypothetical failure case you referenced it wouldn’t help because the instructor didn’t cut away the main - they went straight to their dedicated reserve handle.

Cutting away should automatically deploy the reserve, but deploying the reserve from the reserve handle doesn’t automatically cut away the main.

[outcoldman]

I believe they describe AFF Level 1 jump, where there are two instructors waiting for the student to pull the "line and you are on your own" which they describe a bridle of main pilot chute to main canopy. The idea of this jump is an altitude awareness and for students to pull their main canopy at the right altitude. When they don't - instructors do it for them. Which happens pretty often with students who never done tandems before.

Nobody tells students anything about the RSL at this stage, just teaches them basic Emergency Procedure - "Look at Red, Grab Red, Look at Silver, Pull-Punch Red, Pull Silver".

[LorenPechtel]

Since it says they tangled I don't think your case #1 could be relevant.

I have never skydived and have no interest in doing so but from reading the other comments it seems like there's another possible scenario:

Main deploys badly. They jettison the chute which deploys the reserve--but the jettisoned chute is hung up on something, doesn't actually jettison.