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TV Feature:
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Betsy Querna National Geographic Today |
| July 12, 2001 |
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At 13,000 feet (4,000 meters) off the ground, a small propeller plane flies over an empty field. The door opens and two people jump out, falling at 120 miles per hour (200 kph) towards the ground. They spread their arms and legs in freefall, deploy a parachute about two-thirds of the way down, and land safely on the ground. Traditionally, skydiving has been considered an "on the edge" sport, attempted only by professionals or people with a death wish. But in recent years, its popularity has begun to increase. According to statistics published by the United States Parachute Association, about 311,500 people made 3.4 million jumps in 1999. Chris Needles, executive director of the USPA, estimates that there is about a 2 to 3 percent increase a year in the number of people who jump into thin air for fun. To see what all the fuss is about, National Geographic Today sent correspondent Kristin Whiting to experience it firsthand. "Im afraid I might die," she said boarding the plane. "I just keep thinking, what if my parachute doesn't open." The Question of Safety As skydiving attracts more participants, the number of jumpers injured or killed also rises. Professional skydivers insist that the latest high-tech equipment greatly reduces the risk. But often, both intuition and news coverage tell us otherwise. Earlier this month, two experienced skydivers were hospitalized in upstate New York when both their main and backup parachutes malfunctioned during a tandem jump. Two weeks earlier, a skydiver who had completed more than 250 successful jumps was killed in Kansas when he became entangled in the cords of his parachute. In February, an inquest judge in Canada criticized the authorities for failing to regulate skydiving in that country. If the Canadian government did not want to regulate the sport it should ban it outright, he said after reviewing the case of a person who had jumped to his death. The USPA says that out of 3.2 million jumps in 2000 there were 30 deaths. While that number is comparable to the rate of fatalities in other adventure sports such as downhill skiing, motorcycle racing, and scuba diving, skydiving presents obvious inherent dangers. To make sure everyone is ready for that first jump, the USPA requires some basic training before leaving the ground. Then, a novice must jump with an experienced skydiver. To jump solo, a skydiver must complete at least 20 supervised jumps, in addition to other types of training. Chris Needles explains the emphasis of the training programs. "We have a training system that stresses doing things participants have to do to survive. They know more than anything else which handle to pull and when." Even though there is a rigorous training course, and despite Needles' assurance that skydiving equipment seldom fails, it is hard to get past the terror of freefalling through the sky. For those that can't shake that fear, there's indoor skydiving. Skydiving Without the Sky SkyVenture, in Orlando, Florida, has one of the country's only indoor flying chambers. It is a tunnel, 100 feet (30 meters) tall and 12 feet (3.6 meters) wide, equipped with five fans meant to simulate the experience of falling at speeds up to 120 miles per hour (200 kph). According to Trevor Thompson, the executive vice president of SkyVenture, "The basic concept was to give people that don't have the courage or age (to jump out of a plane) the experience of freefalling in a safe and comfortable environment." Because the wind resistance is the same as in freefall, Thompson says, "If you take out the fear factor, the sensation in the indoor chamber is very much the same." Each year more and more people are gathering up their courage and taking the plunge from the skies. And while there are inherent risks, experienced skydivers say serious injuries and fatalities are few and far between. National Geographic Today's Kristin Whiting, who had the jitters before her jump, couldn't wipe the smile off her face after she reached the ground. "That was incredible! Coming down I was just amazed! I recommend everyone tries a little flying." See Whiting try skydiving on National Geographic Today, airing in the United States on July 12 at 7 p.m. ET/PT. |
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