Crew Chiefs of the Sky

In the Golden Knights Aviation detachment our main objective as Crew Chiefs is to prepare the aircraft so we can support the mission. Once performing at show site our primary duty is to relay information from the pilots to the jumpers and back to the pilots. This includes wind speed on the ground, heading of the aircraft, as well as time to jump and spot reports. All this is key so the jumpers can get out of the airplane safely and on a good location so they can perform and demonstrate to the public at the peak of their great capabilities. For me to really understand what was going on the jumpers head, I had to try it myself. In January 2010, I had the opportunity to do a tandem jump. A tandem is when two skydivers are attached to each by special equipment allowing someone with no prior jumping experience to skydive with a qualified sky diver. Even though it was my first time it was awesome! They even let me play with the toggles (aka steering or brake lines) and got to turn left and right. It was a great experience but I wanted more. Since that amazing experience I have completed AFF traning (accelerated free fall) and I am working to get my class A license which involves 25 jumps. So far I have 14 jumps; not bad for a Crew Chief whose job is to stay in the airplane. Next week I will have the opprtunity to jump from a C-130, a much larger airplane used to transport cargo by the U.S. Air Force. At least that is the plan. Blue Skies!!

Story by SGT Silvagnoli, Jusseppe Golden Knigths AVN Crew Chief.

1. SGT Silvagnoli, Jusseppe learning the basics on Laurinburg, NC, with members of black and Gold demo teams.

2. On their way from Janesville to Eau Claire, WI, members of the Golden Knights catches a rare chance to rest between show sites. Note the amount of equipment the team must carry from site to site. (Photos by SSG Oddo)

3. CW5 Mordarski and CW4 Lowell review the approach procedure in Eau, WI. (Photo by SSG Oddo)