Emergency parachute day: Why it's so important and how to keep your knowledge fresh
As a paraglider pilot, you surely dream of endless, safe flights through breathtaking landscapes. But what happens when unexpected situations arise? In such moments, the rescue parachute can be a lifesaver. That’s why it’s essential to take part in regular emergency parachute day to refresh your knowledge and skills. In this article, we explain why emergency parachute training is so important, what you will learn and how you can keep your knowledge active and fresh so that you can react safely in an emergency.
Why is emergency parachute training so important?
In stressful situations, we tend to fall back on automated action sequences. Without regular training, it can happen that the emergency parachute is deployed too late or not at all. Through continuous practice, the necessary actions become routine so that you can react quickly and correctly in an emergency. A well-practiced procedure is crucial to maintaining control and ending the flight safely.
What do you learn in an emergency parachute training course?
Comprehensive emergency parachute training includes both theoretical and practical components:
Theory: You will learn in which situations the rescue parachute should be used, e.g. in the event of uncontrolled flight conditions or material failure. You will learn to recognize risks at an early stage and make the right decisions.
Practice: You practise the correct deployment of the emergency parachute under realistic conditions. This includes not only the hand movements, but also how to behave after deployment in order to reach the ground again safely.
The combination of theory and practice strengthens your decision-making skills and develops a muscle memory for the right moves. This enables you to react calmly and purposefully even in stressful situations.
Tips to keep your knowledge fresh and active
It is important not only to practise in the official training sessions, but also to regularly carry out simple exercises to keep your knowledge and reactions ready for use in an emergency. Here are some helpful tips:
1. mental exercise: visualization
Sit down in a quiet place and imagine that you are in an unexpected emergency situation. Imagine how you would deploy the rescue – step by step. Think about what decision you would make and how you should behave after the deployment. This mental exercise will help you to react more quickly and purposefully in an emergency.
2. create an emergency checklist
Create a checklist for emergency situations and go through it regularly. Think about what decisions you need to make before and after you have deployed the emergency parachute. What actions do you need to take immediately and what happens afterwards? A structured checklist in your head will help you to think more clearly and take the right steps quickly.
3. simulate emergency parachute deployment during training
Use an empty room or an area with sufficient space to simulate the hand movements for an emergency parachute deployment. Practice releasing the handle, pulling and then acting as if you were actually activating the emergency parachute. This simple exercise promotes muscle memory so that in a real situation you can perform the movements automatically and without thinking.
As it is not practical to constantly throw and repack your own emergency parachute, we recommend that you come to us and train in our simulator with the specially developed harness. Here you can practise with a dummy rescue parachute that is ready for use again within 10 seconds. You should at least use your own harness and emergency parachute for the exercise when you hand in your emergency parachute for repacking. The ultimate, complete training is the real emergency parachute deployment under controlled conditions above water – as part of a safety training course.
4. combine theory and practice in everyday life
Regularly read specialist articles or watch videos on the subject to refresh your theoretical knowledge. Combine this with practical exercises. Remember: the better you understand the theory, the more confident you will be in practice. It is helpful to regularly take part in training courses to test your knowledge in practice.
5. exercise with an experienced training partner
Don’t do the training alone! Find an experienced training partner and practice the deployment and behavior after opening the reserve together. Another person or a video recording from outside can give you valuable feedback on your actions and realistically test your reactions in an emergency situation.
6. reflection after each flight
After each flight, you should take time to reflect on whether there were any risky moments, how you reacted to them and how you could have reacted even better. Before each flight, you should also take time to think about how you would react in possible emergency situations. Think about what could go wrong in flight and visualize how you would act quickly and safely. This reflection is important training to ensure that you are always mentally prepared for emergencies.
Our recommendation: emergency parachute training with experts
To be optimally prepared, we recommend that you take part in professional emergency parachute training. Our partner, High Adventure, offers specialized courses that are tailored precisely to these needs. In addition, we at touch and go Paragliding GmbH regularly organize our own training courses to provide you with the best possible support.
Take the opportunity to refresh your knowledge and improve your skills. Your safety should always come first. Sign up for emergency parachute training today and fly with confidence!
