This is the heart-stopping moment a US solider was forced to deploy a reserve parachute after a terrifying mid-air malfunction.
Army recruits in the Airborne Division in Alaska, US, were practicing jumping out of a plane when one of the members was seen struggling to open his parachute.
The recruit, called Josh, was trying to open his parachute mid-air but the faulty harness refused to open.
Josh then free falls almost all the way down to the ground after his parachute failed to spring into action - and his crew members were seen gasping in horror until the very last second.
Other members had their parachutes opened successfully but Josh drifted away from them and looked set to plummet to the ground.
Fortunately, the soldier was able to deploy his reserve parachute and land safely.
Fellow soldiers cheered after he managed to avoid the potentially fatal landing.
His crew were relieved to see Josh land safely and pumped their fists in the air and clapped at his safe landing.
The footage comes just days after three soldiers were killed and another was injured when two AH-64 Apache helicopters collided as they were flying back from a military training flight near Healy, Alaska.
The incident happened on Thursday, according to Army officials, and saw two of the soldiers die at the scene and a third die while being rushed to hospital.
The US Army’s 11th Airborne Division said the victims included Chief Warrant Officer 3 Christopher Robert Eramo, 39, from Oneonta, New York; Chief Warrant Officer 2 Kyle D. McKenna, 28, from Colorado Springs, Colorado; and Warrant Officer 1 Stewart Duane Wayment, 32, of North Logan, Utah.
In addition, a fourth solider was taken to Fairbanks Memorial Hospital and was said to be in a stable condition, according to a Saturday statement from the US Army.
Maj. Gen. Brian Eifler, commanding general of the 11th Airborne Division, revealed: "This is an incredible loss for these soldiers’ families, their fellow soldiers, and for the division.
“Our hearts and prayers go out to their families, friends and loved ones, and we are making the full resources of the Army available to support them.”
The third incident follows after nine soldiers were killed when two HH-60 Black Hawk helicopters crashed during a night time training mission near Fort Campbell, Kentucky.
The cause of the crash is still under investigation, according to officials.
