SpaceX Polaris Dawn crew completes Academy free fall parachute training
The SpaceX Polaris Dawn Crew has reportedly completed its basic free fall parachute training at the United States Academy on Saturday, according to the U.S. Air Force Academy.
The course, AM-490 Basic Freefall is set up to prepare students to conduct a solo, free fall skydive in their first attempted jump over the U.S. Air Force Academy's Davis Airfield.
AM-490 Basic Freefall is taught by the 98th Flying Training Squadron staff and cadets of the Wings of Blue Parachute Demonstration and Competition teams. The course has been conducted by the Academy since 1962.
The crew consisted of mission commander Jared Isaacman, mission pilot Scott Poteet, along with mission specialists Sarah Gillis and Anna Menon. Menon is also listed as a medical officer for the squad. The team completed the training along with Academy cadets participating in the same course.
"Skydiving seems to have many of the same qualifications that we're looking for in terms of executing complex procedures in a high-consequence, high-stress environment. And the moment you commit to going down that path, this is the only option to go to," Isaacman said.
He added,"This is the best place in the world possible to train for it. Your first jump is a solo jump so that is definitely checking all the stressor boxes that we're looking for, and you're trained by the best skydivers in the world. That's what brought us here."
Isaacman discussed the training and the experience of learning how to skydive and the execution it takes to complete a free fall mission.
"I mean, the training was just so spot on. I mean, this is like the best place in the world where you can learn how to skydive," he expressed. "There is much that carriers over on this, like the ability to execute complex procedures under stress with high-consequence if we fail. That's what we train every day for preparing to go to space. This was like probably one of the best environments we could have outside of the stimulator to get that training in, so it was perfect."
Menon touched on the emergency protocols when skydiving and how much time is put into rehearsals that it becomes second nature while describing her overall experience in the training.
"You know they really drill into you every single, both nominal, and like emergency procedure, you could ever need, and you rehearse it over and over and over, and such that it ultimately becomes instinctual and you don't even have to think anymore," Menon said. "It was incredible, the craziest emotions ever. It's so, so beautiful up there."
The Polaris Dawn crew will conduct space missions that have not been attempted in more than 50 years with a planned spacewalk ahead of them.
Polaris Dawn is scheduled to launch no earlier than March 2023.
SpaceX's Falcon 9 rocket will launch the Dragon capsule with the Polaris Dawn mission from the historic Launch Complex 39A at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
Dragon and the Polaris Dawn crew will spend up to five days in orbit, according to SpaceX.
