Dramatic parachute plunge pictures

[Wayne Harrison]

Dramatic pictures of a New Zealand skydiver spiraling 3,600 meters (11,800 feet) with an entangled parachute to the ground - where he was saved by a blackberry bush - have emerged.

Michael Holmes made headlines after surviving the plummet during a jump over Lake Taupo on New Zealand's North Island on December 12.

Holmes, 25, filmed the fall with his helmet camera, as did a fellow parachutist, Jonathan King.

The video, broadcast for the first time on Monday, shows Holmes spiraling helplessly after his parachute became tangled, then trying to jettison it and switch to a backup chute.

King's camera shows Holmes flopping like a rag doll and spinning wildly as he plunged toward the ground.

Holmes' camera shows him checking his altitude meter on his left wrist as he struggled to turn onto his back to try to spot the parachute problem and correct it.

In the final seconds of his fall, Holmes waves and yells "bye" before the image of his shadow growing larger beneath him fills the screen and the picture goes black.


The full story and amazing video:
http://www.metro.co.uk/news/article.htm ... page_id=34

[adleedy]

amazing

[NZcaver]

Ah, the good old New Zealand blackberry bush - is there anything it can't do?

Amazing video. Glad none of my landings were quite that hard...