I imagine if someone very large parachutes (say a 380 lb football lineman) their terminal velocity might stress the chute too much upon opening, and if someone too light parachutes ( say a 60 lb gymnast) they would not weigh enough to prevent being carried away by the wind. Are there maximum and minimum weights for parachuting with commercially available parachutes?
There is no minimum weight (although there is often a minimum age). The maximum weight is variable and differs from one school/organization to the next, but this chart is typical.
Presumably a really large person could use a tandem chute designed for two people.
Standard parachute canopies (the rectangular “ram-air” wings that are almost universal in sport skydiving) are rated based on size. This doesn’t correspond to a specific jumper weight, as more experienced skydivers will select a smaller and more agile canopy to come down faster; however, the canopy (and the cords which attach it to the jumper’s harness) have a maximum weight rating. Those ratings are actually much higher than would be limiting for a person in good fitness, even given necessary safety margins; however, most schools will not take someone much over 100 kilos (or at least not without additional arrangements), not because of weight restrictions on the rig but because of concerns with landing impact and the instructor/jumpmaster being able to keep up with the student in freefall.
Although there is a minimum age, there is no minimum weight that I’m aware of, except that the jumper must be large enough to fit securely into the harness; however, even with the lightest canopies sometimes the weight of a very small skydiver is not enough to open up the end cells. This is due to the lack of tension on the outside lines, and since it occurs because the main body of the canopy is already fully supporting the skydiver, it isn’t a big deal from either a loft or controllability standpoint for a small jumper, but it is kind of annoying. Going to a smaller canopy (as most skydivers do as they gain experience) usually solves that problem.
Stranger
Skydivers of low mass will sometimes employ weights - this solves the mentioned problems with the end cells.
That’s done more for balance in freefall.
Stranger
Main canopies have suggested weight ranges from their manufacturers, however the reserve canopy and harness system are subject to FAA standards (in the USA - there may be similar testing and certification in other countries).
The standards are found in TSO c23d, here’s a reference:
Testing of the reserve & harness is done at particular weights and opening speeds and there’s a big orange label stitched onto the harness specifying those limits (for example it might say 250 pounds and 160 knots).
That said I’ve never seen a DZ put somebody on a scale, tell them they weigh more than their gear is FAA certified for and refuse to let them jump. I have certainly known and jumped with plenty of people who weighed more than 250 lbs. My recollection is that the pilot of the jump plane is technically responsible for ensuring that all people making an intentional skydive are wearing a properly TSO’d system, and the skydiver (once they exit) is a pilot (the aircraft being themself) and thus they could both be held responsible by the FAA if any problems are traced back to going outside the TSO limits of their gear - someone who knows more about the FAA regs can probably shed more light on this.
When it comes to students a DZ will certainly use some common sense - if you are too large for the harness to fit properly, or if you are way outside the weight range for the main and/or reserve canopy (for example, a 170 sq ft reserve would be fine for me at 170lbs but probably too small for a 220lb beginner) they’ll either have to find gear that fits you (DZs I trained at had equipment set up for various height/weight ranges so they could accomodate various students) or refuse to let you jump.
I think it’s more to equalize fall rates - if one person is a real floater (100lb lady) and another is a bowling ball (short, heavy guy) at least one of them will have to fly at their limits just so they stay level, and that won’t leave as much ability to maneuver. Rather than have the light person spending the entire dive in a tight position to stay down they’ll wear a weight vest so everyone falls about the same in a neutral position.
Operation Dumbo Drop
Oher things being equal, the parachute of the heavier jumper will have a higher velocity - both vertically and horizontally. But beyond this, the effect of wind does not depend on weight - in all cases horizontal velocity is the vector sum of the wind’s speed and the parachute’s.
Military personnel drop with a bunch of equipment in addition to their body weight. The limits listed for the UK military say that 350 lbs. is the maximum weight limit as that gets close to the failure point of the hardware. Interestingly, the metal bits are the weak link.
An article at About.com concerning new army parachutes mentions the old weight limits. In the past, the max weight of jumper and gear was figured at 300 lbs. Average body weight at the time was probably 150–160; their gear would weigh almost as much as the soldier. It doesn’t say exactly, but my guess is that they’re going to up that to about 350–400 lbs. for the new ones. Regular gear for most soldiers is 90 to 120 lbs. but can be much more in certain circumstances. On a drop, they’d probably be carrying extra ammo and ordinance, unless they’re supposed to be doing an infiltration where mobility would be more important. Again, the gear might weigh about what the soldier does on most drops. While it’s not the same as private guidelines, that will probably give an idea as to what you could expect the max loads to be.