Multiple U.S. Special Forces commandos have been killed or seriously injured when their parachutes deployed unexpectedly in planes in a gust of wind from an open jump door.
A Navy SEAL, an Air Force Commando and an Army Green Beret have been among the victims of catastrophic malfunctions with T-11 reserve parachutes since 2014, according to a Washington Post report on Friday.
Most of the casualties were jumpmasters, the experienced parachutists who lean out of the plane to spot drop zones, and their chest-mounted reserve parachutes apparently deployed when gusts of wind hit the lightweight fabric ripcords.
A Pentagon spokesman told DailyMail.com that the Department of Defense is aware of reports of the incidents, but referred questions about security procedures to service departments.
In a federal lawsuit filed this week, Army Staff Sgt. Brycen Erdody, a Green Beret medic, said he almost died last year when his T-11 opened after a gust of wind came through an airplane door.
A Navy SEAL, an Air Force Commando and an Army Green Beret were among the victims of catastrophic malfunctions with T-11 reserve parachutes since 2014
Army Staff Sgt. Brycen Erdody, a Green Beret medic, said he almost died last year when his T-11 opened after a gust of wind came through an airplane door
Erdody was sucked out the door, slammed his body against the airframe and partially severed his arm. He survived and an army inquiry cleared him of negligence in the incident.
“Both of my first ribs were broken, my sternum had collapsed, my biceps had been cut in half, my nerves had been pulled out of my spine,” Erdody told the Post. “They’ll probably have to amputate my arm because there’s no nerve activity, and they never will.”
His lawsuit names T-11 manufacturer Airborne Systems, which did not immediately respond Friday afternoon to a request for comment from DailyMail.com.
It is not the first lawsuit to accuse Airborne Systems of alleged defects to the T-11.
In 2014, Navy SEAL Chief Petty Officer Bradley Cavner was killed over El Centro, California, when his T-11 reserve was activated by a gust of wind, according to a lawsuit filed by Cavner’s parents.
That lawsuit ended in a confidential settlement in 2017, according to court documents.
And in 2019, Air Force Special Operator Staff Sgt. Cole Condiff was missing and presumed dead when his T-11 reserve was opened by a gust of wind over the Gulf of Mexico, according to the Post.
Navy SEAL Chief Petty Officer Bradley Cavner (left) was killed over El Centro, California in 2014 and Air Force Special Operator Staff Sgt. Cole Condiff (right) went missing and presumed dead over the Gulf of Mexico in 2019 T-11 disturbances
The incidents involve the reserve parachute T-11, seen above
The T-11 canopy is seen during test jumps above it. Several U.S. Special Forces commandos have been killed or seriously injured when their parachutes were unexpectedly deployed in aircraft
Critics of the T-11’s design say the parachute’s fabric pull cord is more sensitive to high winds than the parachute it replaced a decade ago, a 50-year-old metal pull cord design.
There are signs that military leaders were aware of problems with the T-11 and were taking steps to address them.
In January 2021, the Army’s Airborne and Special Operations Test Directorate was testing updates to the T-11 at Fort Bragg, North Carolina to “eliminate the potential for premature reserve activations,” according to a press release.
Certified parachute test jumpers completed 23 ‘hazard reduction jumps’ with the redesigned T-11R Single Pin Troop reserve parachute to ensure it worked properly.
The updated version of the T-11 included a change that changed the spare pull-rope handle to a single pin pull, and changed the geometry of the spare handle to ‘eliminate the risk of wind gusts’.
The changes were made to address the premature activation of the previous version, which was thought to have been caused by wind gusts, officials said at the time.
However, those tests were conducted more than a year before Erdody was seriously injured on May 25, 2022.
In January 2021, the Army’s Airborne and Special Operations Test Directorate was testing updates to the T-11 at Fort Bragg to “eliminate the possibility of premature activation of reserves”
Certified skydivers here have completed 23 risk reduction jumps with the reserve parachute T-11R Single Pin Troop, to ensure it functions properly during equipment test jumps
According to his lawsuit, Erdody was sucked out of a plane 1,000 feet above Fort Bragg when his T-11 “deployed and opened violently and unexpectedly in the plane.”
The staff sergeant was ripped from the aircraft, his arm partially breaking against the door frame, and passed out as he fell to the ground.
Erdody awoke to find himself entangled in tree limbs, and the trained medic realized he would soon bleed to death unless he could get help.
According to the suit, Erdody cut himself free from his parachute cords, reached directly into the gaping wound in his arm to press the severed artery against the bone, and staggered to a nearby clearing for helicopter evacuation.