2014 Eloy air accident

The 2014 Eloy air accident occurred on 21 February 2014, when a United States Air Force skydiver, after premature deployment of his parachute, was sucked through the ventilation gap of a SkyDive Arizona Short SC-7 Skyvan and fatally injured in the process.

Accident sequence

On the way to the drop zone, at a flight altitude of 9,700 feet above sea level, the skydiver who later died stood up and, as jumpmaster, gave the instruction to prepare for the jump, with exit in ten minutes. He gave the instruction to put on the parachutes, opened the Plexiglas ventilation gap in the floor and sat down on the seat immediately next to it to put on his own parachute. While doing so, he accidentally deployed his reserve parachute, which was instantly sucked out through the ventilation gap, which, however, was too small for a person to leave the aircraft safely. The skydiver was then violently pulled out of the aircraft within two seconds, his harness being torn off and the aircraft's cargo door being damaged. The skydiver was killed instantly in the process and floated to the ground with his fully deployed reserve parachute. The pilot managed a safe return to the departure airport. He and the remaining nine skydivers were unhurt.

Accident investigation

The accidental deployment of the reserve parachute by the jumpmaster was determined to be the cause of the accident. The opening of the ventilation gap was given as a contributing factor. Interviews with skydivers revealed that the risks of opening the ventilation gap in the floor in flight were generally not recognised or were underestimated. The investigators found that the location of the handles of the release system as well as their design could, on the one hand, lead to skydivers accidentally deploying the parachute when putting on their equipment. Furthermore, the system was said to have been able to lead to confusion, making it possible for skydivers to accidentally attach their equipment to the release handle of the reserve parachute instead of to the grab handle provided for this purpose. It can be assumed that a major reason for the accident was that the harness with parachute was only put on in the aircraft before the jump, and not already on the ground with a corresponding check by the jumpmaster, and of the jumpmaster by an experienced second jumper, as is customary in Germany.