Indoor skydiving
Two types of vertical wind tunnels are used for indoor skydiving: one with the lower location of the propelling screw (inflating) and another with the upper location of the propelling screw (drawing off).
Inflating tunnels are very popular, due to their simple exploitation. The propelling screw is set in motion by an engine, which is positioned under the net. Another key feature of the inflating tunnels is their mobility that allows them to be widely used in different kinds of entertainment events: shows, concerts and tournaments.
Drawing out tunnels are located in the special building. The propelling screw that sucks the air out is located above and isolated by 2-3 rows of metallic netting. In these pipes the wind stream has an identical performance in all the operating areas. Tunnels can be open and closed type. In the tunnel of closed type the air circulates on the reserved cycle, which is necessary in conditions of occasional or constant cold weather, suitable for certain countries where it prevails for the whole year.
Historical facts: indoor skydiving – is a comparatively new type of entertainment. As the majority of various kinds of extreme sports its beginning is dated back to the middle of the twentieth century.
The first indoor skydiving in a vertical wind tunnel was performed in the USA in Wright-Patterson Air Force Base. The person, whose name carries a great sense of respect among the enthusiasts of the indoor skydiving is Jack Tiffany. He worked on a project of parachute development for the NASA space program. The jump itself was carried out in the device, intended for testing airplanes and parachutes.
When the flights in the vertical wind tunnel were tested for safety, the aerodynamically tube has been used for training parachutists. However such indoctrination was allowed only for the military personal, leaving it inaccessible for the civilians. In 1982 Canadian Jean Sen-Zhermen made an inquiry to a patent bureau on his invention – Levitationarium, first vertical wind tunnel intended for the imitation of the free falling of man.
Air acrobatics are not available entirely for everybody. It requires physical preparation, money and time. But it does not mean that this divine pleasure of floating through the skies is unattainable among ordinary American folk. Quite the opposite, flights in a wind-channel are an enthralling event that gains popularity among the public. Indoor skydiving Las Vegas is more safer rather than usual skydiving. Throughout the existence of the indoor skydiving not a single lethal accident was registered. Indoor skydiving in a wind tunnel is much more comfortable for a modern day man surrounded by the boundaries of the mundane life. There is no need to arrive early in the morning on the air field just to be instructed and then wait for the flight that can be delayed or worse, canceled, because of the unsuitable weather conditions.