Buy a life jacket to practice with?
 

Is it possible to buy (fairly cheaply) a lifejacket that can be used to prepare for the C/C swimming assessments? I realise that each time it's used, it would probably have to be popped and fixed with a patch, but if it's only for a bit of practice, I don't see the problem. I have a few friends who are going through training soon, so would be useful to have something like that to get a bit of practice on.

Cheers

CS

Another idea
 

Just go to your local pool have a bit of a swim, and you should do OK:ok:. I've done two now both ok with a little practise. In th last twenty years never heard of anyone failing. Good Luck in a great job.:D

I think it would be more useful just going to a pool and getting some swimming practice and building up your confidence in the water. You don't really 'use' life jackets as such, they are more just a floating device, so they are easier to 'use' if you are a confident swimmer....good luck

designed to stop you swimming
 

life jackets are not there to assist you in swimming, many of us would prefer not to inflate them until NEEDED...if you have to swim to a raft, then board int the life jacket is a hinderance, not a help. Most people swim face down, and a life jactets centre of bouyance should be behind your neck thus to force you face up... this is an unnatural swim position unless you are a scuba diver, in which case it is a natural surface swim position.

Remember there is a front and a back....remember when you have an inflated jacket and JUMP into the water, the jacket tries NOT to sink, your body tries TO sink. The jacket will win and it can hurt....the jacket then rides up over your upper body and tries to drown you.

Boarding the raft is a skill, and does need practice....I suggest that you avoid being first and last....then someone can pull and push you on board....

There are many different types of jacket, and different types of fixing straps, belts etc. I would not buy one, as it will end up being different to your company standard.

lastly a standard jacket, can turn you face down into the water........then you drown....this was the result of a survey by one of the sailing magazines.

glf

How bloody typical. Fella ask's a question - three responses, and not one of them come's close to answering the question.

I've had an ask around, and unless you were to "illigitimately aqquire" one from someone in say engineering, it could be a bit difficult to actually get a hold of one.

If you were to magically acquire one and take one into a public pool, just your luck some nosey type would take issue, and worse case scenario you'd find yourself having a sit-down with someone in regards to the possibility of interfering with aircraft equipment (or whatever the individual country calls it) which is illegal, and rather heftily punishable.

Cheapest bet - buy a standard boating life jacket from a sports or boating store, preferably one of the U shaped ones that clips around your back (similar to the standard aviation lifejacket!). Swimming with one of those on would be essentially the same as an aircraft one.

Most airlines training requires practical work in a pool, most of which is done whilst wearing lifejackets. So contrary to the 5 cents worth in the three posts above, if your not 100% comfortable in the water, then a lifejacket may make things a little bit more difficult, and some practice wouldn't hurt.

Hope that helps!

Get one off ebay. they're on there regularly.

Aircraft Life Jacket on eBay, also, Aircraft Parts, Aircraft Aviation, Cars, Parts Vehicles (end time 24-May-09 18:32:10 BST)

As for popping them.... cringe..... Ok when you service them you inflate them, to deflate it get something hollow like a bic pen outer, push the end of the pin down in the middle of the schrader valve in the mouth piece inflation tube to let the air out, then to get it totally flat again to be able to re roll it up hold or tape the open end of the pen tube in the accessory suction pipe most carpet hoovers come with these days and it will suck it totally flat......... your bottle is going to only work for one inflation, but you may find some of the smaller soda stream type ones will fit for training, but dont use one bigger than the one it comes with!! or just manually blow it up., Your maintenance organisation may well have life expired bottles you can get hold of from them, as they get changed on a time period.


Hope that helps :)

it is possible to buy a aircraft life jacket
 

yes I made the assumption that buying the life jacket was not the end of the exercise but the start.

Thus my reply was to propose that this was a waste of money, so as to eliminate the wasted money.

E bay does carry these, yes.

Most MRO, will have plenty of time ex units.

The deflation is as per the BIC utility tool.

The recharge bottle is available, but there are sereral types, and not all are interchangable. (similar problem with nautical models).

I have 4 units at home, removed from aircraft and stored on my boat. But when the coastguard made a safety visit, I was told to remove these from the boat, as they were not within date, or an approved coast guard design.

glf