![[Two skydivers freefly in red suits.] Blue Skies Magazine i113: May 2019 | On the cover: French freefly Team AirWax members Greg Crozier and Karine Joly photographed above Skydive Sebastian in Florida. Photo by Norman Kent normankent.com](/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/i113_May2019-244x300.jpg)
United Parachute Technologies (UPT), makers of the popular Vector containers, have released Service Bulletin #20110523 for Vector 3 Sport and Student SE containers following a recent incident at Skydive Chicago, Ottawa, IL.
From the bulletin:
BACKGROUND: It was reported that a student jumper after pulling at a planned altitude of 5000’, experienced a very hard opening and broke the upper double zigzag stitching that holds the diagonals in place and tore most of the ring cover off (See Fig1). This allowed the large ring riser attachment to be pulled far away from its normal position, deforming the over the shoulder section of padding and in turn pulled the RSL lanyard releasing the reserve pilot chute.
UPT strongly recommends that you inspect that area of your container for broken stitches, before the next jump and that you consult your rigger if you have any questions or are unsure.
This bulletin is not yet available on UPT’s website, but can be viewed on the webpage of SKYMIK Rigger. Visit this link to view the entire service bulletin complete with pictures illustrating what to look for and how.
