All 13 on New Zealand skydiving plane leap out before crash
8 Jan 2015 11:56 PM GMT
Police spokeswoman Kim Perks said there were six passengers, six crew members and a pilot aboard the plane operated by Skydive Taupo. She said all of them landed safely and that some had been checked by medical staff but she didn’t believe any suffered significant injuries.
She said each of the crew members had planned to tandem dive with one of the passengers, and they managed to do just that as they abandoned the aircraft after the apparent engine failure. She said the pilot also leaped to safety in a parachute.
Roy Clements, the chief executive of Skydive Taupo, said in a brief statement the plane encountered an engine problem shortly after it had taken off.
He said transport authorities were on their way to the crash site to begin an investigation.
On its website, the company offers skydives from up to 15,000 feet which come with up to one minute of freefall: “You shimmy to the door until your feet are dangling over the edge.
3..2...1. out you go!!!!!” the company’s site says.
Robbie Graham, an artist who works at the Wildwood Art Gallery in the town of Waitahanui, said he was standing in front of the gallery when he saw a number of people in parachutes coming down above the lake about 1 kilometer (0.6 miles) away. He said he didn’t see the plane crash.
She said each of the crew members had planned to tandem dive with one of the passengers, and they managed to do just that as they abandoned the aircraft after the apparent engine failure. She said the pilot also leaped to safety in a parachute.
Roy Clements, the chief executive of Skydive Taupo, said in a brief statement the plane encountered an engine problem shortly after it had taken off.
He said transport authorities were on their way to the crash site to begin an investigation.
On its website, the company offers skydives from up to 15,000 feet which come with up to one minute of freefall: “You shimmy to the door until your feet are dangling over the edge.
3..2...1. out you go!!!!!” the company’s site says.
Robbie Graham, an artist who works at the Wildwood Art Gallery in the town of Waitahanui, said he was standing in front of the gallery when he saw a number of people in parachutes coming down above the lake about 1 kilometer (0.6 miles) away. He said he didn’t see the plane crash.
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