Much of the damage to airdrop equipment and supplies occurs during derigging. Airdrop equipment must be derigged and recovered correctly to prevent damage to the fragile nylon airdrop items from cuts, water, and mildew; petroleum product contamination; and excessive exposure to sunlight. Recovery team personnel should be trained by parachute riggers (MOS 43E) prior to an airdrop operation. Riggers may be requested to assist the recovery OIC or NCOIC and to provide technical assistance. Riggers are not responsible for the recovery of airdrop equipment and supplies. The responsibility for recovery are described below.
a. The Commander of the Receiving Unit. The commander is responsible for appointing an OIC, NCOIC, or a supervisor. He is also responsible for organizing teams to recover the supplies and equipment, providing temporary storage if needed, and evacuating all airdrop rigging equipment.
b. Recovery OIC or NCOIC. The recovery OIC or NCOIC is responsible for planning and supervising the operation. He supervises the teams needed to recover and evacuate parachutes and related airdrop equipment.
c. The Receiving Unit. The unit should be capable of conducting the recovery. It is responsible for returning the airdrop equipment to the unit to which it belongs in proper condition as detailed in this manual. The unit can be held accountable for damage to the airdrop equipment as a result of negligence or failure to follow the procedures in this manual.
A majority of airdrop equipment is made of nylon. Nylon is subject to being degraded by sunlight and some types of artificial lighting. Exposure to sunlight, especially for parachutes, must be minimized. Petroleum products such as diesel fuel, gasoline, grease, and oil also have a degrading effect on nylon. Nylon airdrop items may fail or lose strength if they are contaminated with petroleum products. Avoid the use of knives while performing recovery procedures. Airdrop equipment systems generally do not require knives for recovery and derigging. If nylon, dacron, or rayon airdrop items are immersed in salt water they must be evacuated immediately. They should also be rinsed within 48 hours, under the supervision of a qualified parachute rigger, to avoid the possibility of having to condemn the equipment. In the process of recovery, especially in arid climates exercise caution when recovering airdrop equipment, particularly parachutes. Also, small creatures, such as snakes and insects (some poisonous), often seek shelter in the equipment, and they may be evacuated with the airdrop equipment. Take extreme care when recovering damaged airdrop loads containing hazardous materials (ammunition, pyrotechnics, and similar items). Notify Explosive Ordinance Disposal (EOD) personnel before recovery of damaged airdrop loads containing hazardous materials.