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Injury Prevention

DSTO is collaborating with academia to conduct research aimed at reducing the injury rate at Army Training Command’s Parachute Training School.

When the Army Training Command (ATC) wanted to know how to reduce the injury rate at their Parachute Training School (PTS), they turned to DSTO. Together with experts in biomechanics from the University of Wollongong’s Department of Biomedical Science, DSTO researchers have been analysing and evaluating various factors associated with parachute landing injuries.

The main focus of attention is the landing technique used at the PTS: whether the technique being used is at fault or whether training delivery can be improved to optimise the current landing technique. Other aspects being monitored relate to the rate of descent and equipment/environmental issues. For instance, the effectiveness of softening the Drop Zone at PTS by adding top soil to deal with the hardened surface induced by the local drought conditions.

The research involves videoing jumps and landings and then analysing the data from a biomechanical perspective and relating it to the injuries sustained. As of mid-2004, the data collection stage was near completion. In the next phases it is planned to continue monitoring the types and rates of injuries and the associated landing technique faults as assessed by the Parachute Jump Instructors on the courses. Also considered are assessments of different training techniques and rates of descent on leg muscle contraction and the subsequent protective function that the muscles may provide in preventing fractures and sprains.

For the DSTO researchers, the project is an extension of the injury prevention/physiology/biomechanics research that initially focused on the hazards of heat. For the University of Wollongong participants, the project is an opportunity to put into practice work that is often theoretical and restricted to an academic environment.

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