A skydiver had a miraculous escape after his parachute became caught on a plane’s wing while 15,000ft up in the air.
Dramatic footage captured the moment the jump went horribly wrong, seconds after the diver leapt from the plane over Tully airport in Queensland, Australia.
The jumper was one of 17 parachutists who had been due to take part in a 16-way formation jump from the Cessna Caravan aircraft.
The accidental deployment caused the first parachutist to fly suddenly backwards, hitting the aircraft’s wing with his legs. He was then forced to dangle in mid-air while still hanging from the orange parachute.
“The parachute then wrapped around the stabiliser, suspending the parachutist below the aircraft,” the Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) said in its report. The other parachutists continued to exit the aircraft while the two others remained in the doorway, the video of the incident showed.
The snagged parachutist hanging from the aircraft then used a hook knife to cut at 11 rope lines of their reserve parachute to free himself. He was able to release his main parachute successfully despite getting stuck in the remaining lines of the reserve parachute.
“The pilot recalled feeling the aircraft suddenly pitch up, and observed the airspeed rapidly decreasing,” said ATSB’s chief commissioner Angus Mitchell.
He added that the pilot was initially unaware of what happened and believed the aircraft had stalled, so they applied some power. “But upon being told there was a skydiver hung up on the tailplane, they reduced power again,” the investigation revealed.
The diver sustained minor injuries in the incident that took place on 20 September this year but landed safely after the flight.
“With all parachutists out of the aircraft, the pilot assessed they had limited pitch control, given the substantially damaged tailplane, which still had a portion of the reserve parachute wrapped around it,” Mr Mitchell said.
The aircraft also landed safely despite concerns from the pilot who had declared mayday to the Brisbane centre air traffic control, informing that the aircraft had minimal control input.
“The pilot, who was wearing an emergency parachute, prepared to bail out during the descent if they deemed they did not have sufficient control to land the aircraft. But, descending through about 2,500ft, they assessed they would be able to land,” the ATSB said in a statement.
This incident has caused the ATSB to issue important guidelines to parachutists, asking them to be mindful of handles on their chutes, especially when exiting the aircraft.
Hook knives are also a “life-saving” equipment to have handy in the event of a premature reserve parachute deployment, Mr Mitchell said.
“Fatal parachuting accidents have occurred in the past due to aircraft being loaded outside the centre of gravity limits, which highlights the importance of conducting aircraft weight and balance calculations prior to each load,” Mr Mitchell said.
