Fatal Skydiving Accident at Swakopmund Airfield

Incident Overview and Context On 17 November 2019 at 12:40 UTC, a fatal skydiving accident occurred at Swakopmund Airfield in Namibia. The incident involved a Chinese national participating in an Accelerated Free Fall (AFF) training course to qualify as a free-fall skydiver. The student had completed 12 jumps over a two-week period, including an initial tandem jump, under an internationally recognized training program. ## Sequence of Events The aircraft conducting the airdrop took off from Swakopmund Airfield and climbed to 10,000 feet. The student jumped under normal operational conditions, accompanied by an instructor who served as a safety jumper. At 5,000 feet, the student deployed her main parachute as instructed. Video footage recorded during the jump showed that the student experienced a line twist upon opening, which she successfully rectified, resulting in a normally flying canopy. The instructor subsequently lost sight of the student while operating his own parachute and descended to the drop zone. ## Ground Observations and Fatal Outcome The training facility's Safety Officer, waiting on the ground, observed the student descending with a slight right-hand turn. At approximately 400 feet, the student performed a cutaway of the main parachute and attempted to deploy her reserve chute. The main parachute dislodged only on one main shoulder strap, and the reserve parachute became entangled with the main chute's draglines. Due to the low altitude, the reserve chute did not open, and the student fell without parachute assistance, sustaining fatal injuries on impact. Emergency services arrived at the scene but were unable to revive the student, who was declared dead by a doctor present at the drop zone. ## Investigation and Probable Cause The Directorate of Aircraft Accident and Incident Investigations conducted the investigation, utilizing an independent parachute expert from Namibia to assess the probable cause. A ground inspection of the equipment was carried out in Swakopmund in conjunction with a Namibian Police team for legal inquest purposes. The report identified the probable cause of the accident as impact with the ground.