Airtec Expert CYPRES 2, User Manual

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- CYPRES 2 User’s Guide - page 49
Our intention is to make parachuting safer, so we
addressed this issue. In 1991 and 1992 we designed
a loop and disc solution to reduce these risks as
much as possible.
The CYPRES loop is woven like a tube so it can be
inserted into itself to create the closing loop’s eye.
At the same time it is only 11/16 inch in diameter
(1.8 mm), is extremely flexible and has an extra
smooth surface to make it extremely slippery. In
addition, CYPRES loops are treated with a special
silicone on the top 1.5 inches (4 centimeters) to
maximize the smoothness of its surface, thereby
further reducing the friction.
Although the loop is very narrow, its breaking
strength is in excess of 410 lbs (185 kg).
The CYPRES disk washer (often called a smiley
due to its appearance) is a round aluminum disk
with no sharp edges on its outer contour. It has
three holes. The finger-trapped loop is threaded
through the middle hole and then through the left
hole. The loop then gets threaded through the right
hole and knotted.
The three holes have no sharp edges. It is a very
10. The CYPRES loop and disk system
Previous reserve closing loops were made from
old parachute suspension lines or similar material
made of Kevlar, Dacron, Spectra, etc. They were
often thick and rough and became stiff while un -
der tension in a packed container for a prolonged
period of time. As a result, these loops could delay
the reserve container opening or even prevent it
after the ripcord was pulled because they became
trapped between the grommets.
A number of skydivers died because the reserve
flaps did not open in time.
Riggers and packers used normal metal washers
to fasten the reserve closing loops at the bottom of
the container. Sometimes these washers had sharp
edges. A loop that was under a lot of tension in the
container could be damaged and cut accidentally by
those sharp edges, particularly when coupled with
vibration in a car or in an aircraft.
Skydivers were killed by premature reserve open-
ings caused by fraying loops. In one case, an aircraft
actually crashed because of a premature reserve
opening.