SFL-2022-056 · Cause: Landing – unintentional low turn
Partially verified Facts as reported in the sources below. This is not an official investigation.
Incident
- Date
- 07.11.2022
- Country
- USA
- Drop zone
- Skydive Maui
- Place
- Hana, Hawaii
- Context
- Sport / fun jump
Jumper
- Gender
- Male
- Age
- 58
- Total jumps
- 1,176
- Years in sport
- 35
Equipment
- Main canopy
- 150 sq ft
- Wing loading
- 1.10 lb/sq ft
Cause
- Category
- Landing – unintentional low turn
- Contributing factors
- Low currency, Wind / turbulence
What happened
His first jump at this drop zone and the first after a four-month break. Winds were strong (a nearby station reported 20 mph gusting to 35). He was high on final, used deep brakes and several turns to lose height, the canopy partly collapsed, and he turned too low and hit the ground in a diving turn.
Lessons for safety
After a layoff and at a new drop zone, choose conservative conditions. If high on final, accept a longer landing rather than turning low.
Sources
- www.uspa.org Federation, USPA 2022 fatality summary, case #4 (anonymous)
Is something wrong or missing? Send a correction and mention SFL-2022-056.