A skydiver in his 50s has died after jumping out of a plane at an aerodrome as police are probing his ‘unexplained’ death.
Emergency services rushed to the scene at Headcorn Aerodrome, near Maidstone in Kent, at around 10am yesterday.
Officers were seen searching the fields at the aerodrome and Kent Police confirmed a solo skydiver had died.
Lucy Barrett, 53, saw something fall to the ground as she waited to do a charity skydive.
The mum of three said she and others watching were left ‘traumatised’ after realising it was the man’s body.
She said: ‘There are five people in our group, and we saw what looked like a person falling, and the chute did not open.
‘We were the next jump, and I was trying to get in the right headspace to jump. I did not believe that it had happened. I was trying to keep myself composed.
‘There was a woman who was really upset about it, and we were trying to calm her down.
‘There was a search, and they only found five of the six parachutes that should have been there.
‘It was after that we were told there had been a fatality and that the jump would not be going ahead.
‘We weren’t told who had died, but what I gathered it was a man who had around 10 years of experience in skydiving.
‘When I spoke to my 22-year-old son, he told me he had seen and heard the whole thing. He has been impacted by it.
‘The police turned up and took witness statements, including one from my son.’
‘It happened just before I was being taken off for my skydive.
‘My son was watching from the spectator’s section and saw the person hit the ground and the parachute open with the impact.
‘Another person in my group was getting hysterical because she saw what happened.’
She said that after the parachutes were counted at the landing base, one was missing and after a survey plane was sent out, it was confirmed one of the jumpers had disappeared.
Aerodrome staff then found the body while Mrs Barrett was waiting with professional skydivers to see if she could go up for her jump, she said.
A Kent Police spokesperson said: ‘Officers attended the scene where a man in his 50s was confirmed to be deceased. His next of kin has been informed.
‘The death is currently being treated as unexplained and an investigation into the circumstances is underway in liaison with British Skydiving.
‘A report has been completed for the coroner.’
The company in charge of the jump Go Skydive confirmed the incident will be investigated by the British Skydiving Board of Inquiry.
A Go Skydive spokesperson said: ‘We are aware of an incident involving a solo club skydiver at a drop zone in Headcorn. Our thoughts are with those affected.
‘We would like to express our sincere thanks to all emergency services and on-site teams for their swift and professional response, as well as to the ground staff who are assisting at this time.
‘A British Skydiving Board of Inquiry will investigate the accident and, when completed, will submit reports to the coroner, the police, the CAA, British Skydiving and other relevant authorities.
‘The report will include the board’s conclusions and will, if appropriate, make recommendations.
‘At this stage, we are unable to provide any further information.
‘We will continue to cooperate fully with the appropriate authorities and will provide updates if and when it is appropriate to do so.’
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