So, Agent Carr was incorrect by saying the sport wasn't like it is today with older people involved in the sport? I guess there is no reason he couldn't of been a instructor, in the past as well? they talked with Teddy....
An instructor who jumped at night wearing loafers and didn't request a helmet or goggles with his chutes?
I missed this post that's a good thought! I've said the same about smoke jumpers. those guys are use to a lot of protection, so it would seem odd they would attempt this?
I have many hundreds of jumps and have only had one where my helmet proved beneficial. I got kicked really hard in the head as an unstable freefall "magic carpet" formation broke up violently. I was nearly knocked unconscious. I think the helmet made the difference. Never needed it on a landing although it added a safety measure.
Goggles are helpful, but you can jump without them. My goggles were ripped from my face on exiting the DC 9 jet. My strap held them on and I was able to get them back over my eyes after a few seconds. I could see OK without them, but it was very uncomfortable having my eyes windblasted.
If Cooper planned to pull off the steps he wouldn't need goggles. Many jumpers still jump without helmets although it is a poor decision from a risk management point of view.
I used to jump with just sunglasses held on with a strap made of daisy chained rubber packing bands. It worked OK. Cooper had sunglasses.
Seems like the pure titanium and bismuth (if Cooper's) would dramatically narrow the list of suspects.
Bismuth was used as a machine tool cutting aid, so maybe Sheridan could have been exposed to it at Boeing?
"Steelmakers have worked hard to find a substitute for lead in free-machining steels. In the case of Ispat Inland, the company's brand of Incut steels uses bismuth as the substitute for lead. Machinability tests conducted comparing lead and bismuth additives are said to be equivalent.
The free-machining properties between bismuth and lead are similar because the two elements behave alike in the melt. Both are insoluble in steel and give lubrication in the cut. Bismuth actually distributes better in the melt than lead. It has a slightly lower melting temperature, 520º F. Bismuth has the environmental advantage over lead of not being toxic. Use of bismuth as a lead substitute in steel is proprietary to Ispat Inland."
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