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| Two die in tandem skydiving accident south-west of Sydney | Two die in tandem skydiving accident south-west of Sydney |
| (6 months later) | |
| An experienced skydiving instructor and his pupil found dead after crashing on to a private property at Wilton on Saturday | |
| Australian Associated Press | |
| Sun 16 Jul 2017 06.02 BST | |
| First published on Sat 15 Jul 2017 23.28 BST | |
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| The instructor killed in a tandem skydiving lesson alongside his student was extremely experienced, having made more than 10,000 jumps in his 30-year career. | The instructor killed in a tandem skydiving lesson alongside his student was extremely experienced, having made more than 10,000 jumps in his 30-year career. |
| Investigators are still trying to find out what went wrong in the jump that has been described as “not especially challenging”. | Investigators are still trying to find out what went wrong in the jump that has been described as “not especially challenging”. |
| “This is the first fatality involving a first-orientation tandem skydive the company has had in over 40 years of operation and is an extremely rare incident,” the Sydney Skydivers centre said on its Facebook page on Sunday. | “This is the first fatality involving a first-orientation tandem skydive the company has had in over 40 years of operation and is an extremely rare incident,” the Sydney Skydivers centre said on its Facebook page on Sunday. |
| The instructor, aged in his 60s, and his student, who is believed to be a Singaporean national in his 20s, died during a tandem skydiving lesson at Wilton, south-west of Sydney, on Saturday afternoon. | The instructor, aged in his 60s, and his student, who is believed to be a Singaporean national in his 20s, died during a tandem skydiving lesson at Wilton, south-west of Sydney, on Saturday afternoon. |
| It is understood the pair took off from the nearby Sydney Skydivers centre, which was also their intended landing zone, but crashed on to a private property about a kilometre away. | It is understood the pair took off from the nearby Sydney Skydivers centre, which was also their intended landing zone, but crashed on to a private property about a kilometre away. |
| “The particular skydive the two men were undertaking was not especially challenging for a highly experienced instructor, who had done nearly 10,000 skydives and had nearly 30 years experience in the sport,” Sydney Skydivers said. | “The particular skydive the two men were undertaking was not especially challenging for a highly experienced instructor, who had done nearly 10,000 skydives and had nearly 30 years experience in the sport,” Sydney Skydivers said. |
| A spokesman for Sydney Skydivers said more information would be released once police and safety officers from the Australian Parachute Federation finished their investigations. | A spokesman for Sydney Skydivers said more information would be released once police and safety officers from the Australian Parachute Federation finished their investigations. |
| All skydives were cancelled on Sunday out of respect for the two men. | All skydives were cancelled on Sunday out of respect for the two men. |
| “Our sympathies go out to the families and friends of both men as well as those in our skydiving community,” the Sydney Skydivers post said. “We are doing our best to ensure any support is provided to our staff, skydivers and those involved at the scene itself.” | “Our sympathies go out to the families and friends of both men as well as those in our skydiving community,” the Sydney Skydivers post said. “We are doing our best to ensure any support is provided to our staff, skydivers and those involved at the scene itself.” |
| Colombian tourist Catalina Granados jumped minutes before the fatal accident happened. She was with her boyfriend, who booked the skydive as a gift for the couple to experience together. | Colombian tourist Catalina Granados jumped minutes before the fatal accident happened. She was with her boyfriend, who booked the skydive as a gift for the couple to experience together. |
| “I couldn’t believe (it),” she told AAP on Sunday. “We were waiting (for) hours and nobody told us what happened.” | “I couldn’t believe (it),” she told AAP on Sunday. “We were waiting (for) hours and nobody told us what happened.” |
| Another skydiver, Dustin Leonard, told News Corp Australia he was on his way to sign up for a second jump scheduled for Saturday afternoon when he was told some skydivers had landed far away from the scheduled area. | Another skydiver, Dustin Leonard, told News Corp Australia he was on his way to sign up for a second jump scheduled for Saturday afternoon when he was told some skydivers had landed far away from the scheduled area. |
| “I don’t think anyone knew something bad had happened,” he said. “I think it’s just tragic. It’s just a fluke accident.” | “I don’t think anyone knew something bad had happened,” he said. “I think it’s just tragic. It’s just a fluke accident.” |
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