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A group of skydivers boarded a small plane to attempt a thrilling 16-way formation jump. The mission seemed like just another day of jumping off the craft, aligning and dispersing to the ground, and letting gravity do the rest. However, things went literally sideways, as the first parachuter who took the plunge suffered a malfunction in his reserve parachute that got stuck on the plane’s wing flap.
The Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) released the video of the incident that took place on September 20, 2025 over Mission Beach, 140 kilometers south of Cairns.
The parachute jump, part of the “Big Ways at the Beach” event, had 17 parachutists on board of Cessna Caravan aircraft, which was hired by the Far North Freefall skydive club. The skydivers were ready for a 16-way formation jump from 15,000 feet in the air, along with a single-person camera crew.
The first parachutist jumped only to have his reserve parachute snagged. It dragged the person as the chute snagged onto the wing flap, while the man was left dangling. During the cacophony, another parachutist was bumped into free fall. Meanwhile, the quick-thinking skydiver released himself from the death trap by cutting 11 cords of the reserve parachute with his knife. He landed safely with minor injuries.
The ATSB investigation in the matter found out that the mishap dragged the plane’s speed dramatically, leading the pilot to assume that the aircraft was stalled. In response, the pilot applied power but reduced it once realizing a person was hanging.
Meanwhile, 13 parachutists jumped off, leaving two behind in the plane. With a damaged tail, the pilot made an emergency landing at Brisbane. The pilot was ready to deploy his own emergency chute in case the landing failed.
The Australian Transport Safety Bureau has released vision of a near midair disaster, involving skydivers in far north Queensland in September earlier this year. A light plane took off from Tully Airport, south of Cairns, on September 20 with 17 parachutists on board.
The group… pic.twitter.com/sCAluG5bJn
— 7NEWS Australia (@7NewsAustralia) December 11, 2025
