Australia’s transport safety watchdog has released dramatic footage showing a skydiver left dangling thousands of meters in the air after a reserve parachute snagged on a plane’s tail during a high-altitude stunt south of Cairns.
The Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) published the video after concluding its investigation into the September incident, which unfolded within seconds of a planned 16-way formation jump at about 4,600 meters. The footage, recorded by a parachuting camera operator, captures the chaos as the first participant reached the aircraft’s exit.
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According to the ATSB report, the reserve parachute deployed prematurely when its handle caught on a wing flap, tethering the jumper to the aircraft and knocking the camera operator—who was straddling the doorway preparing to jump—into freefall. The bureau did not identify the people involved or disclose ages or genders.
Video shows the suspended skydiver momentarily bringing their hands to their helmet, apparently in shock, before taking a critical step to save their life. While dangling over the drop, the jumper used a hook knife to cut through the reserve’s lines, freeing themselves from the aircraft.
Once clear, the parachutist deployed their main canopy and landed safely. The skydiver survived the ordeal; no further medical details were released.
“Carrying a hook knife—although it is not a regulatory requirement—could be lifesaving in the event of a premature reserve parachute deployment,” ATSB Chief Commissioner Angus Mitchell said. The bureau highlighted the tool’s role as a last-resort safeguard in complex or crowded jump environments, where equipment can snag on aircraft structures during exits.
The incident caused substantial damage to the aircraft’s tail, the ATSB said, limiting the pilot’s control authority. The pilot issued a mayday distress call and managed to land the plane safely despite the impairment.
Investigators said the jump was designed as a coordinated multi-person formation, a routine but intricate skydive that demands precise timing at the door and in freefall. The ATSB’s video and report underscore how quickly risks can escalate at the threshold between aircraft and sky—particularly when gear or body position interacts with flaps, handles or protruding surfaces at the exit.
The bureau’s findings stop short of mandating changes but serve as a caution to operators and jumpers about equipment checks, exit discipline and the value of carrying a cutting tool. The report also spotlights the camera operator’s vulnerable position at the doorway and the cascading consequences when a single snag disrupts an otherwise choreographed sequence.
While the ATSB did not release further operational details, the investigation’s release—and the harrowing video—add to a growing body of safety messaging around formation skydives and aircraft-jumper interface hazards. The case offers a stark reminder: when seconds count at altitude, a simple tool and practiced emergency procedures can make the difference between catastrophe and survival.
By Abdiwahab Ahmed
Axadle Times international–Monitoring.
