(Nov. 12) — A skydiver was killed Wednesday when he struck the airplane from which he had jumped, reported The Press-Enterprise.
Stephen Millard Harrington, 40, was participating in a group parachuting event in California with four other divers.
The event involved what are called wingsuits, said The Associated Press. These are special jumpsuits with panels between the diver's legs and arms, which allow a longer free fall and extra maneuverability.
Dennis Sattler, the veteran skydiver who followed Harrington out of the plane, surmised that he had inflated his wingsuit too quickly.
"His opening the wings early, combined with the high speed of the airplane, caused him to rise up and hit the tail," Sattler told the AP.
When Sattler jumped from the twin-engine plane, said The Press-Enterprise, he saw Harrington far below. "He was not flying his wingsuit," Sattler told the paper. "He was falling,"
"I would say he was unconscious or dead when I was looking at him," said Sattler. "Questions were beginning to creep into my mind, but I didn't understand the problem at that point."
Harrington fell, apparently head first, said the paper. A witness told The Press-Enterprise she saw his reserve parachute open about 100 feet from the ground -- too late to slow his fall. He landed in a driveway in Murrieta, Calif., shortly before 5 p.m.
Bill Norwood rushed over to help, said the paper, but there was little he could do.
"He was lifeless. I couldn't feel a pulse," Norwood said. "We just feel bad for his family."
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