The Pioneer Para Commander was used by The Red Devils from 1965 brought back with them from The Golden Knights. This was a highly sophisticated canopy designed bya Frenchman and developed by Pioneer Parachutes Incorporated, USA, in conjunction with the 'Golden Knights', the United States Army Parachute Team.
The Para Commander had 36 slots and vents which direct the flow of air trapped under the canopy. This provided a forward drive of up to 12 miles per hour with favourable winds and forward speeds of up to 25 miles per hour could be attained, whilst descending at the rate of 15 feet per second. Distortion of the slots by means of control lines attached to the harness gave the ability to the parachutist to brake the canopy's forward motion and execute 360° turns in less than 5 seconds.
The Para Commander or (PC as it was often called) was oval in shape with its apex drawn down in to the centre and had distinctive stabelising panels on the sides.
Because of its low porosity material it actually was able to fly like a glider with high manoeuvreability and with a very low rate of descent.
It was stowed inside its pack within a sleeve and by using a set packing routine the correct sequence of deployment was ensured. This helped to prevent malfunctions and created slower and easier openings, thereby minimising the shock of decelerating from speeds of up to 180 miles per hour to 9 miles per hour in a period of only 3 seconds.
Performance Data for the Para-Commander
Rate of Descent: 190 lb. suspended weight.......... 15.7 ft / sec.
250 lb. suspended weight.............. 17.6 ft / sec.
L/D (lift to drag) Ratio ............................................ 3-4 sec.
360 ° Turn ................................................................ 3-4 sec.
Deployment Time: jump and pull ........................... 2.4 sec.
Terminal velocity .................. 1.7 sec.
Landing Force .......................................................... equal to jump from 3-3½ ft.
Manoeuvres ............................................................. turn, brake, stall
Of particular interest is the lift to drag (L/D) ratio, which shows that the canopy moved 11.6 feet horizontally for every 10 feet vertically. That is, horizontal speed is 16% greater than vertical speed in nil winds.
Below is some good footage of the Para Commander in flight and landings
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