alcmist@ssc-vax.UUCP (Frederick Wamsley) (04/17/84)
i was an aff student in the early days, when people still needed a waiver
to the bsr's to make an aff jump with a student who did't already have
5 static line jumps.
from the student's point of view (mine) it was an incredible amount
of fun. it is much easier to make a long delay than a short one. there
is time to start breathing, open your eyes, and notice what is happening.
from a safety standpoint, it is certainly better than the static-line
operations which don't use aads (yes, there are some). the student has
very little control over the way the formation flies, especially if
the jumpmasters know their job.
they generally do. i watched an aff jumpmaster/instructor certifica-
tion course at my home drop zone and was impressed by two things. first,
the people trying for ratings were competent jumpers, not geeks. second,
the certifying officials were willing to flunk people.
the uspa board of directors asked a *lot* of questions, waited and
saw how aff worked with relatively advanced students, and generally took
a very conservative position toward aff. i think it fair to say that
aff has proven itself.
-fred wamsley, d-8844