Veteran Skydiver Dies After Midair Collision with Another Parachute in Georgia

A 48-year-old veteran skydiver tragically died on Saturday, June 21, after colliding midair with another skydiver’s parachute while descending toward the landing zone in Georgia.

The victim, identified as Jasmine Black, was jumping with Skydive Atlanta at the Thomaston-Upson County Airport when the incident occurred, according to Upson County Sheriff Dan Kilgore.

Authorities said Black’s parachute struck another jumper’s canopy at a low altitude as she approached the landing zone. Despite her attempt to cut away her main chute and deploy a reserve parachute, the emergency mechanism failed due to the limited altitude, Sheriff Kilgore explained.

Emergency responders arrived at the scene around 4:30 p.m. and found Black deceased on the tarmac.

Black was an experienced skydiver with more than 160 jumps. Her death marks the second fatal incident involving Skydive Atlanta in five years.

In 2020, 18-year-old Jeanna Triplicata and 35-year-old instructor Nick Esposito were killed in a tandem jump after their primary chute malfunctioned and the emergency chute failed to deploy in time.

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has joined local authorities in investigating the latest tragedy.

According to national skydiving data, nearly 4 million jumps were recorded in the U.S. last year, resulting in nine fatalities. Emergency parachutes were deployed in 12.3% of jumps, while about 5.6% of skydivers needed medical attention, most commonly for landing-related injuries such as ankle sprains.