Active-duty members of Yuma Proving Ground’s Airborne Test Force conducted the jumps at Zaragoza and Torrejón air bases. The two-week campaign also included tests of the MC-6 personnel parachute.
The live jumps followed earlier trials at Yuma Proving Ground in Arizona using weighted torso mannequins. Those tests allowed evaluators to examine T-11 deployment from the A400M before placing soldiers aboard.
Yuma engineers designed and built an aluminium deployment rack for the mannequin tests. Aircrew used a large crank to move and release each test article in a controlled sequence.
The parachutes carried no physical instrumentation during the flights. Test teams instead used cameras inside the A400M and ground-based tracking systems to record each deployment.
“That was pretty successful,” said Ervin Rosales, YPG test officer. “We gathered some good data that gave us good insight and data to proceed to live jumps.”
More than two dozen Yuma Proving Ground personnel supported the testing in Spain. Cameras, portable tracking mounts and other equipment were shipped from Arizona before the campaign.
“They were very welcoming and helpful with the requests we had and everything we needed,” Rosales said. “It was well coordinated and pretty dynamic and flexible with their schedule.”
The T-11 is the main personnel parachute used by U.S. forces. It provides a slow and stable descent in high winds and supports heavier combat loads than earlier systems.
The parachute underwent initial developmental testing at Yuma Proving Ground in the early 2000s. It continued to inflate during trials involving deliberately introduced canopy and airflow restrictions.
The latest testing focused on interoperability between the T-11 and the A400M. The results could support future U.S. airborne operations using allied transport aircraft.
