For many, an airdrop is something related to the military only, however, even civil aeroplanes can also do airdrop. Basically, whenever something is dropped from a plane, be it humanitarian aid, weapons, equipment and even leaflets, it is considered to be an airdrop. Airdrops require special kinds of parachutes and in recent times, ECAD parachutes defence supplies factory, OEFHZ has come up to manufacture with improved versions of them. Today, even heavy vehicles like tanks can be airdropped into even very harsh terrains. If you want to know more about this kind of airlift, read on.
When did the airdrop start?
Airdrops basically started the time aeroplanes started to be part of military and civil life. At first, there were no parachutes or special planes to perform airdrops; packages were just bundled well and pushed out of an aircraft door while on air. But today there are specialized places called cargo aeroplanes and airdrop parachutes to do this airlift.
How many types of airdrops are there?
The types of airdrop depend on how the items come down. There are mainly three types of airdrops which are:
Low-velocity airdrop: In this type of airdrop the load is dropped using parachutes that slow down the descent as much as possible. That way when the load hits the ground, the impact is minimal. This kind of airdrop is generally used when delicate items have to be airdropped as well as heavy equipment like military vehicles. The latest development in such parachutes now makes it possible to even airdrop tanks.
High-velocity airdrop: In this type of airdrop, the load is dropped by a parachute that stabilizes it when it falls. It also slows downs the descent of the drop but not as much as the parachutes that are used in a low-velocity airdrop. Durable items like ready-to-eat meals are often dropped using this kind of airdrop. Another form of high-velocity airdrop involves the aircraft getting really low, almost touching the ground, and unloading its cargo using Low-Altitude Parachute Extraction System or LAPES.
Free-fall airdrop: As the name suggests, this kind of airdrop is done without using any kind of parachute. They are mostly used to drop leaflets or any other kinds of propaganda pamphlets. It was used extensively during Second World War and now is part of psychological warfare.
Airdrops are very vital in both military and civil lives in today’s world. This is why entities like ECAD parachutes defence factory, OEFHZ is providing the parachutes that are used for both low-velocity and high-velocity airdrop.
