Sweat streaked down my hot face like rivers through a desert. I was waiting inside the hot-ironed C-141 jet idling in the brutal Georgian hundred-degree heat combined with a horrid humidity. The misery of wet t-shirts sticking to my body, beneath an army uniform attached with parachute packs, was a small price to pay for becoming a U.S. Army Airborne paratrooper.
Only six minutes after takeoff, our jumpmaster yelled a series of commands up until his next to the last command, "Stand in the door!" The red light above the opened door was bright. The first jumper handed the jumpmaster his yellow static line and moved into position, waiting for the final command. A gush of warm wind whipped through the door and then the light turned green. "GO!" the jumpmaster yelled.
The soldier in front of me started moving forward. I followed like a robot, staying close behind. Seconds later, he vanished. There was no time for second thought now. I found myself staring right into the jumpmaster's eyes as I handed him my static line. I walked towards the open door of the aircraft while in flight, and stepped out into the breeze!
Feeling like a ball having been thrown by Nolan Ryan, I saw my boots in front of me as I flew through the sky in the horizontal position for a brief second until I felt the canopy jerk open before reaching my four-count. Smooth sailing the rest of the way down. After executing an efficient landing, I gathered my chute, rolled it up, placed it into the canvass bag and watched other soldiers dot the sky as they exited a C-130 aircraft.
For a young kid who had just dropped out of college and felt like he was heading nowhere in life, I was feeling a bit exhilarating at the moment, and in my wildest dream, would never have guessed I would be spending my next twenty-five years in the Army.
SaM
Only six minutes after takeoff, our jumpmaster yelled a series of commands up until his next to the last command, "Stand in the door!" The red light above the opened door was bright. The first jumper handed the jumpmaster his yellow static line and moved into position, waiting for the final command. A gush of warm wind whipped through the door and then the light turned green. "GO!" the jumpmaster yelled.
The soldier in front of me started moving forward. I followed like a robot, staying close behind. Seconds later, he vanished. There was no time for second thought now. I found myself staring right into the jumpmaster's eyes as I handed him my static line. I walked towards the open door of the aircraft while in flight, and stepped out into the breeze!
Feeling like a ball having been thrown by Nolan Ryan, I saw my boots in front of me as I flew through the sky in the horizontal position for a brief second until I felt the canopy jerk open before reaching my four-count. Smooth sailing the rest of the way down. After executing an efficient landing, I gathered my chute, rolled it up, placed it into the canvass bag and watched other soldiers dot the sky as they exited a C-130 aircraft.
For a young kid who had just dropped out of college and felt like he was heading nowhere in life, I was feeling a bit exhilarating at the moment, and in my wildest dream, would never have guessed I would be spending my next twenty-five years in the Army.
SaM