Tandem goes in

[screwbag 0]

Yesterday during the american boogie, a tendem went in...
the jump went well through the dive, on deployment of the main, there were tension knots causing lines to break. the subsequent cutaway resulted in a reserve deployment while unstable. in theory the two on board tumbled through the lines, and lines tangled on the students legs.
and the pair spiraled into the ground landing about a mile NE of the dropzone in an empty field. The tandem master was awake and responsive when help arrived, and he actually refused pain killers saying " I don't wanna get dizzy"
he suffered a compound fracture to his left femur and a broken left arm. (i have heard reports of possible broken pelvis and internal bleeding but it is unknown if it is true)
the passenger suffered many injuries wich resulted in his death in the hospital.
both were taken to the hospital in seperate life flight helicopters.
The Tandem master went thru surgery and is expected to be okay. ( and in my opinon he's one tough hombre)
But my best to Skydance and the families of all involved.
Ryan- Get well soon man!
Blue skies

[skymedic 0]

My regards to the family....and blue skies...
3..2..1..C-YA
marc

[Skyflier 0]

My sincerest condolences to the family of the passenger and hopes for a speedy recovery for the TM. Blue skies.
JP

[TomAiello 26]

Oh, man, that's my home DZ. I've been out of town for a while, but I still feel connected to it.
This stuff always sucks. And we've had a tandem fatality/lawsuit thing before. I really hope it all works out.
--Tom Aiello
tbaiello@mac.com

[n2skdvn 0]

condolences to the passenger's family......
Whenever I feel blue, I start breathing again
click me

[Lindsey 0]

Condolences and wishes for a complete recovery.....
Peace~
and Blue Skies....
Lindsey
The empty can rattles the most

[hobbes4star 0]

sorry to hear this. blue skies....
"great achievement comes only at great risk" the Dalai Lama

[rgoper 0]

it is always perplexing to hear of these events. my best wishes to the divemaster, and my heartfelt condolences to the family of the passenger.
Richard
"Gravity Is My Friend"

[sunshine 2]

Prayers and good thoughts to both involved.
"A million mile fall from grace, thank god we missed the ground"

[SkymonkeyONE 4]

This is another good reason that all of our tandem rigs have big "Jack" hook knives sewn to the back of the passenger harness for easy access. It is possible that this TM had one and didn't get to it; I refuse to speculate. Either way, it's always bad when you have a student fatality. I hope the DZ and the TM recover.
Chuck
Are you a Monkey or a Flunky? HERE

[lummy 4]

Ryan Gifford is the Manager and a Senior Rigger at Action Air. He also teaches our Canopy and CRW skills camps. although it is still speculation, the reserve Mal was a lineover and they went in Spinning. While this is tragic that the tandem student lost their life, If it were not for Ryan, it would have been worse in my opinion.
Get better quick Ryan :) And my condolences to the family of the Tandem student
Gary
the INTERNET comes in any color you'd like

[Sebazz1 2]

My condolences to all affected...........
Sebazz........

[freeflir29 0]

Sorry to hear....that sucks...

[skreamer 1]

Aaah man!! I got my first rig/RW suit/freefly suit from Ryan. He (along with JP) and the others at Action Air are such a nice bunch.

I hope he makes a full recovery! Condolences to the student's friends and family.

Will

[JohnnyD 0]

>although it is still speculation, the reserve Mal was a lineover and they went in Spinning.

If this is indeed the case, please don't let it get lost in the shuffle. Let us know what happened and how to prevent it from happening to us, if possible.

Best wishes to all.

[Macaulay 0]

That really sucks. On top of the horribleness that is such a death a general, when a student goes in, it's a severe blow to the sport.

- Mac

[thrillseek 0]

God, that's awful. You hate to hear about something like this.
My thoughts, prayers, and condolences go out to all involved

[Cricket202 0]

Very sad to hear that a tandem passenger lost thier life, but the light at the end of the tunnel- the TM was not also taken from us. He will have a long road to recovering -both mental and physical!!

hopfully it will be a speedy recovery in both aspects!!


if it was not dangerous...they'd call it Bowling!!!

Blue Skies, and heart felt condolances to family and friends of these two.