SFL-2024-018 · Cause: Landing – intentional low turn
Partially verified Facts as reported in the sources below. This is not an official investigation.
Incident
- Date
- 18.05.2024
- Date of death
- 19.05.2024
- Country
- USA
- Drop zone
- Skydive West Plains
- Place
- Ritzville, Washington
- Context
- Sport / fun jump
- Jump type
- Swoop / canopy piloting
- Phase
- Approach & landing
Jumper
- Gender
- Male
- Age
- 42
- Total jumps
- 1,400
- Years in sport
- 9
Equipment
- Main canopy
- 84 sq ft
- Wing loading
- 2.40 lb/sq ft
Cause
- Category
- Landing – intentional low turn
- Contributing factors
- Low currency
What happened
First jump of the season after several months off. He started a 270° turn to final far too low, hit an asphalt surface next to the landing area and slid about 100 ft. He was taken off life support the next day. He was flying an 84 sq ft cross-braced canopy at a wing loading of 2.4.
Lessons for safety
Coming back after a break, start with conservative approaches before returning to high-performance landings.
Sources
- www.uspa.org Federation, USPA 2024 fatality summary, case #1 (anonymous)
Is something wrong or missing? Send a correction and mention SFL-2024-018.