CANBERRA, Australia — The Australian Transport Safety Bureau released dramatic video Thursday showing a skydiver cutting himself free after a reserve parachute snagged on a jump plane’s tail at about 15,000 feet over Tully Airport in Far North Queensland. The bureau’s report says the pilot declared a mayday, then landed the damaged Cessna Caravan safely, as investigators also flagged an oxygen lapse and a weight-and-balance breach, Dec. 11, 2025.
How the skydiver ended up hanging from the tail
The incident unfolded during the third parachute load of the morning, Sept. 20, 2025, when the unpressurized Caravan (VH-DVS) climbed with 17 parachutists aboard for a planned 16-way formation, according to the ATSB’s media statement with video and its final report.
At 15,000 feet, the pilot slowed to 85 knots with 10 degrees of flap. As the first skydiver climbed out, his reserve handle snagged on a wing flap and the reserve parachute fired into the slipstream. The yank whipped the skydiver backward, dislodged the camera flyer and slammed the skydiver’s legs into the left horizontal stabilizer, leaving the skydiver suspended below the aircraft.
“The pilot recalled feeling the aircraft suddenly pitch up, and observed the airspeed rapidly decreasing,” ATSB Chief Commissioner Angus Mitchell said.
Thirteen parachutists still exited while two watched as the snagged skydiver used a hook knife to cut 11 lines. Freed, the skydiver deployed his main parachute and landed with minor injuries. “Carrying a hook knife could be lifesaving in the event of a premature reserve parachute deployment,” Mitchell said.
The pilot maintained about 120 knots during the descent, declared a mayday to Brisbane Centre air traffic control and, after assessing control at about 2,500 feet, landed safely at Tully.
Why the skydiver’s near-miss became a broader safety warning
Oxygen lapse: The report found the pilot did not use supplemental oxygen at or above 14,000 feet, despite the regulatory requirement.
Weight-and-balance breach: Investigators said the pilot and operator did not ensure the aircraft was within its weight and balance envelope before departure, though loading was not linked to the incident.
Hook knife reality: A knife was carried on the aircraft as required, but there was no practical way to get it to a skydiver hanging from the tail — making the skydiver’s own hook knife decisive.
For operators, the plain-English CASR Part 105 guide for parachuting from aircraft details jump-plane requirements for oxygen, emergency equipment and loading records. The video spread quickly after the Associated Press report highlighted the skydiver’s escape and the pilot’s controlled landing.
Older reports show these risks aren’t new
Those same themes echo through earlier documents and investigations, including a 2001 ATSB investigation into a fatal Caravan skydiving accident, an ATSB hypoxia-and-fatigue case from 2021, the Australian Parachute Federation’s 2024 hypoxia guidance for jump operations and a March 2025 ATSB report on a Barwon Heads parachuting aircraft accident.
For every skydiver, the takeaway is blunt: be mindful of handles, carry the right cutting tool and rehearse for the unexpected. For every jump pilot, the lesson is just as clear — oxygen use and weight-and-balance checks have to be automatic, long before anything goes wrong.
