Warbird Information Exchange

This was sent out to CAF OPS Officers, and others I suppose. If anyone can help, the contact info is in the letter.


"We are in the need to locate a Irvin SL-1 or Irvin SL-2 lap Parachute. (circa 1929-1943)

The FAA wants to drop the lap rating out of their ratings. In order to stop that from happening we need to locate a parachute, train, and then certifiy a rigger on that system.

A very brief histoty of this Parachute is as follows:

Built by Irvin ( proper spelling) a "g" was mistakingly added to the name after the war started by a clerk during incorporation of the company. Some parachutes have Irvin on them, while others have Irving.

The parachute has long risers down the front to the container andalso has a "center pull" ripcord. The ripcord would be pulled upward toward from the lap to the airman's chest to activate the parachute.

Simply put, this parachute is a Irvin Seat Parachute with the container mounted on the lap, no metal ripcord housing, and the long risers down to the parachute.

This parachute was mainly used for tail gunners, mainly in B-17's as I am told. But I guess anyone could have had one.

My cell number is 864-426-3040. Call anytime, day or night for this.

Any help on this is greatly appreciated,

Thanks in advance,
Mark


Mark E. Lancaster
CEO/FAA DPRE/Master Rigger
Skyworks Parachute Service, LLC
2222 Buffalo-West Springs Hwy.
Buffalo,SC 29321
864-429-8428
www.skyworksrigging.com

_________________
Mike

Nobody knows where one might be?

_________________
Mike

I've got to take the devil's advocate position here- Why should this rating be kept in the system? these chutes are so rare you are having to go on Wix to try and find one! Let's let it expire a natural death and let the FAA take this obsolete stuff off the books. I don't think there are very many tail gunners needing their chutes packed for action these days. While you or someone you know may like to keep this on the books how much effort and money has to be expended by the FAA to keep an examiner or two up on this outdated stuff? that's my tax dollars you are starting to waste there.

_________________
All I did was press this red button here...

Somebody here might be better able to help.

http://www.dropzone.com/cgi-bin/forum/gforum.cgi

The lap chute was so short lived because there were better alternatives that came out in WWII. I have been collecting parachutes for over 30 years, and have seen only one in a private collection. I don't know of any in existence. I recommend trying to contact the WWII Airborne Demonstration Team of Frederick OK- I know some of their members collect and jump WWII vintage chutes (not what the team regularly uses, but some of them do jump old canopies). Plenty of photos exist of this parachute- I am pretty sure Errol Flynn wore one in Dive Bomber.

_________________
REMEMBER THE SERGEANT PILOTS!

I assume this is different than the normal bomber chest pack chute, which I am sure that I have seen in some museum and/or reenactor display like at Geneseo. If anyone has it maybe a reenactor does, but some of their stuff may be replaicas.

I don't think it is costing the FAA or the taxpayers anything to just leave the rating there, though I am not sure why the rigger would have a need for this rating other than just to collect them like some pilots try to get helicopter or ATP some other certification that they are not going to use.

_________________
Bill Greenwood
Spitfire N308WK