Jump
Saturday morning started off gloomy with low ceilings giving the cadets time to go back into the Jump Building and getting a refresher before heading out for their aerials. Both M & T days were out this morning for their first jumps. They were only able to get one or two jumps in before the winds came up and cancelled the rest of the day. Most of the students for this go were Class of 2020.
During the academic year, all classes are split into M and T days, depending on what their schedule is will determine what day they will take a class. When AM-490 has a Saturday class, those days tend to include both M and T day groups. Our coverage of this week’s T day needed to be on Saturday due to the weather. M days’ jump started out at 10 degrees with the runway still covered with ice and snow. The cadets were transported by van to Peterson AFB to take off for their jumps.
The Cadets are able to Jump Tuesday to Saturday, Monday and Sunday are no Jump days. On the weekdays the M and T day students only have about 2 hours to jump during their class period but on Saturday's they have as much time as they need to complete their jumps or until 3pm, whichever comes first. By the end of the week the cadets should be able to complete all 5 of their jumps. While the Cadets are jumping, the Wings of Blue Cadets assist them by radio as they make their way back to the ground. Each jump is videotaped from the second they exit the plane through their 10 second freefall until they release their parachute. After the entire group has landed, they are then all briefed and graded on the execution of their jump. Sometimes this means the occasional retraining or practice before going for their next jump.
To view the rest of the pictures from our coverage of Jump, go to Galleries > Airmanship > Jump. Or click the link below.