A 35-year-old skydiving instructor was found dead in a wooded area near Nashville after an apparent fall without a parachute during a jump conducted by Go Skydive Nashville. At 8:19 p.m. on a Saturday evening, the fatal crash occurred in the 4500-block of Ashland City Highway. Around 7 PM local time, authorities discovered the instructor’s body.
Though search efforts continued into the evening, authorities said the instructor remained unaccounted for by 5 PM. This led to a massive search and rescue operation around the area. It was a stark contrast to the rescue efforts that first responders were engaged in when they first learned the news. The student had ended up stuck in a tree with his parachute deployed. Splash Nashville fire department even had to use a ladder and pulley system to extract the student who’d been trapped upside down for several hours. Immediately following the rescue, the student was said to be “awake, alert and in stable condition.”
Three other skydivers who jumped immediately before Russella landed safely. In the meantime, the aircraft they jumped from made it back to Tune Airport without incident.
Go Skydive Nashville is committed to safety and professionalism at all times. They are still pushing for accountability by further probing the conditions under which the fall occurred. In response to our inquiry The Flying Swans wrote that they’re still figuring out what happened. They too reiterated that Go Skydive Nashville is committed to working with the investigators — local authorities and the FAA — in their investigation. They doubled down on their commitment to uphold the most rigorous training and safety standards.
“At this time, the team is focused on supporting those affected by this tragedy.” – Go Skydive Nashville
The incidents have sparked a discussion about industry safety practices for skydiving. Our investigations and work not only continues, but expands. Both Go Skydive Nashville and state authorities are focused on getting to the bottom of what went wrong in the deadly jump.
Witnesses and those involved have reported feelings of shock and sorrow at the loss of life, particularly as the instructor was well-regarded within the local skydiving community.