r/theydidthemath • u/Fizzerolli • 3d ago

[request] Assuming fresh powdery snow, how deep would it have to be for the paratrooper to survive, if possible?

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My son sent me this. My immediate thought based on nothing is that it’s unsurvivable regardless of the depth.

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u/electrogeek8086 3d ago

How survivable is a 500 feet drop without a parachute? At first glance it doesn't seem that high.

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u/ErisGrey 3d ago

I survived. At the time of my accident, I was one of 8 people.

https://www.reddit.com/r/a:t5_29marg/comments/e5pedf/my_injuries_and_what_made_me_open_this_subreddit/

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u/thexvillain 3d ago

I have a friend whose parachute didn’t deploy on his final training jump. He survived with similar injuries. I would have thought you were him, but his happened in 2009.

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u/ErisGrey 3d ago

Was it at Bragg too? I know a congressional inquiry got opened up eventually. I heard there were other accidents, but no detail on how bad they were.