Utah’s own Black Diamond Equipment has gone and innovated again. It’s no secret that the company has been working on a new, game-changing avalanche airbag system, and so it was that the JetForce pack was on display at the Outdoor Retailer 2014 Winter Market. And for proof that the pack is the mac daddy of airbag packs, it was awarded the Best Gear of the Show award by Outside Magazine, The Gear Junkie, and The Gear Institute.
I got a first look at the JetForce in action at the Utah Snow and Avalanche Workshop last fall, and was very impressed with the technology. Basically it uses an electronically controlled jet fan for inflation instead of compressed air or gas.
Black Diamond designed this system from the ground up, which is typical of their track record, and what they came up with is superb. The JetForce technology has three main parts – a fan inside the housing with a butterfly valve, a CPU with rechargeable Li-ion battery, and an activation handle.
So why use a fan instead of compressed air? Well, with a fan, you can inflate and deflate the bag multiple times. This allows you to practice with the system, and makes you less timid about deploying as compressed air is a one-and-done deal. The Black Diamond JetForce is also smart – it has a self diagnostic feature to ensure everything is set up correctly before you head out on the mountain. In addition, they focused on both airbag volume and puncture recovery. Once activated, the fan runs for 1 full minute to keep the 200L airbag topped off. In this mode, the airbag is able to recover from up to a 6 inch slit if you happen to snag the inflated bag on a branch.
Another key feature is that the deployed bag runs on a 3 minute cycle, topping up the airbag and then automatically deflating… hopefully right after the snow stops washing-machining around you. This provides a big air pocket and reduces the potential for an ice mask forming if you get buried. And, unlike compressed air or gas, you can take this avalanche airbag pack on a plane.
The JetForce avalanche airbag pack weighs in at 7.2 pounds, and they say it’s good for up to four deployments on one full charge. And instead of searching town for a scuba shop, to refill your air canister, you can instead just plug the pack into a wall socket and be fully charged by morning.
There will be three JetForce packs available, the Heli 11L, Halo 28L, and the Saga 40L. Each pack will come in either red or black and in two different torso sizes. The pack will cost you though, over $1,000 a pop.
I for one think the Black Diamond JetForce Avalanche Airbag pack is the coolest thing at Outdoor Retailer this year, and will be hard pressed not to shell out a grand as soon as it’s available in stores.