Black Diamond Issues Voluntary JetForce Airbag Recall

This from Backcountry mag editors today:

Announced today, Black Diamond has issued a voluntary recall of all first-generation JetForce avalanche airbags backpacks. Black Diamond is encouraging all JetForce owners to visit jetforcerecall.com for information regarding returning packs for a required firmware update.

According to Black Diamond, in a limited number of cases, the JetForce packs sold by BD, Pieps and POC have experienced system malfunctions resulting in involuntary shutdown or failure to deploy. All JetForce packs sold between November 15, 2014 and July 7, 2015 are affected by the recall and these issues, Black Diamond says, can be resolved with a firmware update. Turnaround time on the update is two weeks, Black Diamond says.

“While there have been no accidents involving any JetForce Technology packs, our commitment to our users’ safety leads us to issue this recall to make the required firmware update on all packs,” Peter Metcalf, President and CEO of Black Diamond Inc., said in a press release.

Three years ago, Black Diamond first began developing the JetForce airbag system, which uses a battery-powered fan to inflate the 200-liter airbag. Six backpacks using the technology—made by Pieps, POC and Black Diamond—came to market in November 2014. “It’s totally different from what anyone else is offering, so yeah, there are concerns and worries,” Ryan Guess, Black Diamond’s ski product manager, told Backcountry Magazine in the January 2015 issue. “The fan system is a new idea,” added Paul Harmon, a U.S. sales rep for ABS packs. “Time will tell how effective it is.”

For more information on this recall, visit jetforcerecall.com.