§ Sir F. SYKESasked the Secretary of State for Air whether the parachute adopted for use in the Royal Air Force is automatic in its opening action when employed for human drops; whether it necessitates action on the part of the parachutist; whether, if the latter is the case, it is practicable and safe to modify the parachute to eliminate the necessity for studied action by the parachutist under circumstances which lend themselves to error of human judgment; whether such modification has been carried out with success; whether alternative types exist which are automatic in opening action; and, if so, what conditions have prevented the test of such types?
§ Sir E. HOAREAs regards the first and second parts of the question, the Irving parachute is released from its container by a cord pulled by the parachutist, after he is clear of the aircraft; the remainder of the opening action is automatic. As regards the third and fourth728W parts, it is possible to render the action of the device independent of the volition of the parachutist, and it is in fact so made automatic when the parachute is tested with a dummy before issue to the Service. But this method is undesirable in other cases because of the danger that premature release may involve entanglement with the aircraft. The moment at which it is safe to release the parachute depends upon the behaviour of the aircraft after the jump has been made, and it is, therefore, important that the parachutist should be able to choose the moment of release. In the case of an automatic release, the success of the drop would be dependent on the aircraft flying in such a way as to avoid entanglement with the parachute. As regards the fifth and sixth parts of the question, various types of automatic parachutes exist and have been tested, but up to the present the merits of the Irving as a life-saving device are considered to be the best established.