Standing inside the helicopter’s open door, after a signal from the parachute instructor, 16-year-old student Dam Trang steps out into the unknown and plunges from a height of 900m at speeds reaching 350kmph.
Three seconds later, she pulls the cord, her canopy opens, and she parachutes safely to the ground.
It was the first jump for Trang and her classmates at the Southern Airlines Club after two months of intensive training.
Since the Southern Airlines Club opened its first parachute training course in March last year, over 80 people have signed up, 20 of which are women.
Trang, the youngest of the parachutists, joined the course as an 11th grade student of the Hcm city National University’s High School for the Gifted.
The female parachutists come from all walks of life, such as teachers, painters, doctors, teachers, TV editors and lawyer.
During the two-month training course, attendees spend their weekends studying the parachute’s structure and operation principles, how to open and fold the canopy, how to land safety, and what to do in case of emergency.
On their jumps, the ladies carried 15kg parachutes on their backs and 5-kg emergency canopies strapped to their chests.
Thanh Thanh, a club member, says she’ll never forget her first jump.
"When the helicopter’s door opened and a gust of air poured in, I was a little bit nervous looking down at the ground." she says. "But I calmed myself down, took a deep breath, and jumped out with my eyes shut, counting one, two three in my head.
"Then suddenly, like I was gifted a pair of wings, I felt as free as bird. No words can describe my feelings at that moment; time stood still," Thanh, an IT expert, describes with a smile.
Like the other students, Thanh was very nervous the day before taking her first jump. "I couldn’t sleep for nervousness," she says.
"My mother even brought offerings to the pagoda and prayed to Buddha for my safety," Thanh Xuan, a teacher, remembers.
Ngoc Lan’s and Kim Anh’s husbands didn’t want them to attend the course, worrying about their safety.
"We really wanted to experience the feeling of gliding through the air," 32-year-old Ngoc Lan says, explaining why she attended the course despite her husband’s lack of support.
Forty-one year-old Hien Luong adds that she attended the course because she wants to prove the old girl-power song was true: ‘anything you can do, I can do better’.
Club chairman, Nguyen Hoai Nam said: "This sport, which requires exact technical movements, gives parachutists chances to conquer their fears. Female parachutists by definition have a strong personality."
(Source: VNS)
Tag: Airlines , Hcm , Hcm City , Pagoda , Train , Vietnam , Vietnamese , Women Vietnamese women learn about jumping for joy
*Related News:
Asian Zither Festival attracts audience
Miss Vietnam Mai Phuong Thuy to be awarded Miss Charity
Thirty Beauties to Vie for Miss Viet Nam Title
A breath of fresh air - Ho Tram beach
Festival in Binh Dinh recalls peasant revolt
Crooners conquer silver screen
Vietnam gears up to host Mrs World 2009
Fashion fair to be launched in HCMC
Binh Dinh all set for mega festival
Signing for Mrs. World Pageant to be Held at Rex Hotel