Back-Tracking highlights interesting, lesser-known moments in skydiving through the years. These photos are often unearthed from boxes in the attic, old photo albums and dimly lit DZ closets. Please send submissions to communications@uspa.org.

“Over the years, this is one of my favorite shots—’Sun Burst,’ of the Navy Parachute Team in the early ‘60s over Rancho Canejo, Caifornia. The Navy’s film group from Navy Air Station Point Magu was shooting a movie, ‘Chuting Stars,’ on the team, and I picked the perfect day to shoot with a very wide-angle Nikkor lens.

“The lighting, sky and scenery were perfect, and it was a good moment for me as the three teammates headed for the camera. Lyle Cameron and Doyle Fields were doing the freefall movie work, and I didn’t have the experience they had with 16mm film and shooting with U.S. Air Force gun cameras with 100-foot daylight load magazines.

“Even after all these years, that film has a couple ‘damn, look at that shot’ moments to offer.”

Chip Maury
D-865