Parachutist dies after crash landing
Published: 00:00, 16 April 2004
A PARACHUTIST died in hospital after crash-landing from a jump at an airfield on Easter Sunday.
Ethan Brentwood, 27, from Horley in Surrey was critically injured after failing to pull out of a steep 270 degree turn during a 4000ft jump at Headcorn Aerodrome, near Maidstone.
He was flown by Kent Air Ambulance to Maidstone Hospital but suffered multiple injuries and died later with his family around him.
An investigation by the British Parachure Association, is expected to be completed today at the Headcorn Parachute Club, for which Mr Brentwood had successfully jumped over 150 times.
Peter Sizer, the club's chief instructor, said: "There is no evidence that there was a problem with the equipment, which had opened as it should.
"It appears to have been a tragic accident. He attempted to execute a turn close to the ground but his descent speed was higher than it ought to have been for landing.
"He had been jumping for about a year and did it as a hobby. He was a likeable young man and very keen. He was the first out of the plane that morning."
"He was in the recovery position and still breathing when the air ambulance arrived. It wasn't until lunchtime that we were told by his sister that he was unlikely to survive.”
Mr Sizer added: "These tragedies are very rare. Last year in this country there were about 245-246,000 jumps in the country of which only a couple of people lost their lives."
All parachute jumps at Headcorn Aerodrome were cancelled once it emerged how serious the young man's injuries were.
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KentOnline reporter