Originally posted by Curval
When I did my first (and only) jump, on a static line the instructors talked about the device you mention, however they claimed the name had to be changed from Automatic to Assisted, or something like that because the word Automatic implied that it was guarenteed to work...and that wasn't the case with the opening devices at that time.
Has this changed?
Ah I think we're talking about two different things.
With the Static Line program, you got a static line that pulls out your chute as you exit the plane. An alternative to having a Static Line is to use IAD - Instructor Assisted Deployment, where the instructor releases the chute for you. Perhaps this is what he was referring to?
AADs are there when you've f@cked up, lost altitude awareness for some reason (doing relative work, malfunctioning audible or altimeter, free flying head down or whatever) or when you've panicked and done nothing. It's astounding to read about teh situations where people freeze up - even with experienced skydivers it's not unheard of of situations where they've pulled the cutaway but not the silver handle. It's the last line of defense and your last chance to extend your life expectancy beyond 5 seconds. There are two systems, one mechanical and one electronic. The FXC has a spring that automatically pulls the pin on the reserve if you go over a certain speed at a certain altitude. It's not as reliable as the electronic CYbernetic Parachute RElease System (CYPRES), which has a small pyrotechnic charge that fires a razor which cuts off the closing loop alltogether - no risk of a hard pull on the pin or a broken pin. Still even so, if you dump yer reserve into a pile of sh|t, you're outta luck.
Your instructor is totally correct when he says it
might work. The CYPRES is very reliable but even so it's a device there to increase the odds of you getting a chute out - it cannot guarantee it. I cannot see how one can 'assist' it however - it fires when you've f@cked up, end of story. It 'assists'
you in the sense of probably getting the reserve out, so in this sense he'd be right.
It's considered good practise to jump as if you didn't have an AAD, although the veterans of the sport think the 'CYPRES generation' is placing too much trust in these devices.
They're
totally automatic and
normally work when turned on. There are some risks (premature firing) but they're not very high with the CYPRES. The CYPRES has at least 200 documented saves. It's an expensive device to purchase and even more so to own but I find its presence reassuring (being of the CYPRES generation
)
How come you only did one Static Line jump? It gets *really* good once ya get some free fall. It gets even better when you do some 2-way jumps. It gets incredible when there's someone 2 meters from your face, in a sit-fly with a big grin on their face. or a cartwheel. Or.....
Get started again - we could do some fun jumps together 
