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http://www.thelocal.se/42814/20120824/

Why do you say "Another Kjerag Fatality" ?

Your probably getting the names Kandersteg and Kjerag confused for one another. They are 2 different locations. The last fatality here at Kjerag was 2010, and the one before that was 2005.

As more details of the incident are gathered, the SBK will keep everyone posted so that knowledge can be shared.

Sparky

Fly free my friend!

Sad news....too many deaths recently

These are some of the facts about the jump, however the exact reason for this type of malfunction is unknown.

- This was a 2 way from exit point #6, no video evidence.
- The deceased was wearing a PF tracking suit and did a normal delay of approximately 15 seconds. Opening altitude was normal and not considered low, approximately 800ft AGL.
- The pilotchute was seen out trailing, and the canopy material fluttering about 1 metre above his back. No line stretch.
- The jumper appeared to remain stable all the way until impact.

Because the location of impact was an area of very large boulders and the lack of parachute material visible, other jumpers on the ground could not get to him and identify what the malfunction could have been. The Heli rescue was on scene 20 minuets or less hovering with 1 skid on a boulder to get out and take the deceased and equipment away. The heli rescue was guided to the general area via mobile phone and was able to see the exact location because of the view from above.

There is still a possibility that a person from the Base Klubb boards member may get the opportunity to inspect the gear in the near future. But this permission from the authorities has not been given as of yet.

Nationally was Swedish, however his name will be released when it is sure the family has been notified.

Sparky

[quote]RIP buddy

Sad news. Hate to hear it. I wonder what caused it....BSBD

Velcro rigs are apparently forbbiden, not ataching it to this incident but ......
Take care, space and sorry if I am spelling wrong in this Ipad.

he had a 2 pin rig....

Top or bottom through loop?

Is it possible to mis route the bridle so that it would be wrapped around the upper closing loop under the flap? This would cause the bottom pin to be out & pilot chute to be extracted but parachute to be either not out, or out & trailing shortly behind the jumper.

There are multiple ways that pin rigs can kill you compared to velcro -- which is why velcro dominated BASE jumping initially, and why one of the main objections to the Sorcerer 2-parachute BASE rig was that it was pin-closed instead of velcro-closed.

Then aerials and wingsuit base jumping entered the scene, with their body position and airflow presentation differences from standard boxman or even unaided tracking positions -- all of which velcro rigs had trouble handling.

So we moved to pin rigs to deal with those changes, and it has pretty much worked out fine because while pin rigs can kill you more ways than velcro, it's apparently not that hard to school people on how to rig them so you don't kill yourself with one.

But people make mistakes, and when speed and low altitude are involved, mistakes hurt more and kill easier.

There's not enough data yet to figure out exactly what happened with this one, but starting with the hypothesis that one or more components were misrouted or snagged on something is not unreasonable.

44

Yes. I know of a closed container BASE fatality where this was the likely cause.

 Routing the briddle coming from the top flap to the first pin its very easy to lock the container with the briddle end (where there is a fold and bartacks) being lodge beetwen two flaps stiffeners or around the closing loop(unless you have a velcro stuff on the briddle and you let this part out the pin cover) iam suprised that routing the briddle this way is still a standard for most of the rigs and for most of the peoples, routing the briidlle between the two pins is so simple and work so well...

Many manufacturers recommend routing out the top because of the potential to create a hesitation or hangup if the pin cover flap pinches the bridle. I don't think any system is foolproof--we can screw anything up.

Personally, I prefer routing out the middle as well.

i also heard that the fact of routing the briddle from the top help to prevent the briddle from catching air in case of premature pincover opening during flight i personaly use rigs with well designed pincovers and good lenght closing loops so iam feeling more confortable with routing the briddle the way its seems to be more effective against riglock

 with a briddle coming in the middle if the pin cover flap pinches the briddle its only can pinch the briddle on the part between canopy attachment point and first/top pin so even with a pinched briddle at this location the two pins are still free to move an with two pins out and a pulling pc the rig is not very likely to stay closed those are assumtions and maybe i am wrong i totally agree with the fact that nobody and nothing is foolproof

-edit
iam sorry, but discussing such technical infos in such place is maybe not realy appropriate my apologize

An interesting and quality discussion, and one I'd like to see evolve.. mods move to techical please?

A Board member of the SBK was recently able to do a full gear inspection at the police station, spending over 2 hours in total. There are two very important finds to be noted.

1- The stash bag had the option of the front compression with drawstring. After further inspection it was found that the compression drawstring had a distinct scissor cut, and the barrel lock which was above the cut was off the string and gone.

2- The area around the canopy attachment on the top skin showed signs of friction marks in the shape of a circle when laid flat on the floor during the inspection.

It is the conclusion of the SBK that these two finds are related to each other. In theory if the drawstring was not stowed safely before the jump, or came out in free fall then it can be a potential hazard to get entangled with the PC during deployment. The drawstrings are normally made from lines which would be able to handle the strong PC pulling forces and not break. The distinct cut of the compression drawstring was likely made by the rescue team during the recovery to free up the equipment while being gathered and taken away. The friction marks on the top skin are likely there because the PC and bridle during deployment pulled the top skin of the canopy through the compression drawstring opening. Which then became restricted and creating the friction marks as the PC was continuously pulling for several seconds thereafter.

The conclusion here is based on what was witnessed during the incident; “The pilot chute was seen out trailing, and the canopy material fluttering about 1 metre above his back. No line stretch.” Along with the two important finds, and the entanglement theory this horseshoe malfunction may have occurred.

Sparky

Thanks to the SBK for gathering this information, and Sparky for disseminating. Very unfortunate set of circumstances and another example of how exacting our preparation and performance needs to be.

BSBD.

Agreed.

You folks have apparently done a good job of carefully going over the information and evidence to deliver an investigative quality report. This is useful information and the dissemination has been done -- in my opinion -- in a way that is still respectful to next of kin and friends.

Thank you.

 Reminds me of teaching a friend on the original prodigy that came with a cinch cord/tightener on the jacket. When he tried to deploy, he reached thru the loop that had made its way out, and horeshoo-ed his pilot chute. He realized he was fucked and grabbed the PC as he dumped his reserve.
Would have been screwed with a one canopy rig. Makes you realize how important step one is in the deployment sequence.

Blue Skies to the jumper .......

thanks Sparky

I always felt uncomfortable seeing bits of stash bag sticking out of the tray pocket on rigs but didnt know why, now i know.
this thing could also happen if a loop of stash bag strap got into the airstream as well so this potential problem is not limited to the bags with compression drawstrings

maybe tray pockets should have zips

In my small time on exits watching people i have told atleast 10 people to tuck in there drawstrings,

The best thing you can do is a a complete gear check.. and have friends that you jump with check over ..

when i am on the exit i double check myself and then i also keep a look out for other people. if you see something say something...

you could save a life

be safe out there guys

For the record most stash bag pockets should open to the left in an attempt to mitigate this concern.
Also the fact that the bag was cut to separate the gear from the jumper suggests that the bag may have been worn under his jacket.
Either way people need to ensure that their shit is all tucked in.

Edit to add: I have always fealt un-easy in regards to stash bag pockets too.

Stashed stash bag phobia has always been a paranoia of mine. Ever since I was gearing up for a jump with a two-piece prodigy suit and reached back to check my handle only to feel my drawstring hanging out the back right near my BOC.
BSBD, RIP and thanks for the detailed report Sparky.

Have the pocket on the left side of the rig. Maximises distance from right side BOC. Both my rigs from 2 manufacturers have them on the right side. Couldn't figure reason why....

I guess I stand corrected.

My rigs have the pocket on the left and
I STILL prefer to stick the stash bag in
a cargo pocket or somewhere else.

Yes, Thanks to Sparky and the SKB for
providing good follow up to this incident.

BSBD and condolences to the family
and friends of the lost jumper

Me too, always used the pocket on the leg straps...
BSBD

What is this obsesion with open side pockets? I mean 90% of the time you don't have to whip it out with your rig still on to slam the canopy in it for a fast running get away. And even in those cases what stops you from just having it in your pants pocket? I always built a nice large zippered pocket with pleats in it so it had a LOT of room. Put all kinds of shit in there including a much nicer stash bag for that long hike out. Honestly whats wrong with a nice zippered pocket?

Lee

that works good for low stuff but the problem is more when youre wearing tracking suit or wingsuit, don't want assymetric lumps. and you (i) want to do the same thing for all jumps.

What container was he using?

If you are using a suit then wear the empty stashbag under the suit. It always surprises me that more people don't do this: it's comfortable, it's not in the way and it doesn't stick out anywhere.

Found this post this morning looking for other things :

http://www.basejumper.com/...=stash%20bag;#992738

:(

R.