This is the terrifying moment when an Army recruit is forced to pull an emergency parachute after a malfunctioning equipment refused to open hundreds of feet in the air during a training session in Alaska.
The recruit only identified himself when Josh was in the middle of a parachute training exercise with fellow Alaskan Airborne Division troops in March when his parachute failed.
Footage shows dozens of soldiers gasping from the sidelines as the recruit struggles in the air to open his parachute.
“Oh, see that guy over there,” said a soldier. Another panicked recruit raised his arms above his head and said, “OMG!”
The heartbreaking incident lasted for seconds until suddenly loud cheers erupted as the young soldier landed safely on the ground.
Dozens of soldiers jump from planes during parachute training in March
A soldier named Josh from the Airborne Division in Alaska experienced a parachute malfunction during a training exercise in March. Dozens of recruits watched the horror from the sidelines
Seconds away from an emergency landing, the soldier’s backup parachute deployed. Many of the soldiers cheered in victory
It was a close call for the rookie, as he had to freefall until he could deploy his reserve parachute shortly before hitting the ground, which luckily paid off.
On April 27, two military helicopters crashed in Alaska near Fairbanks, killing three soldiers in the mid-air collision. According to John Pennell, a spokesman for the US Army Alaska, the fourth soldier survived.
Tragedy occurred when two AH-64 Apache aircraft returned to Fort Wainwright from an aerial gunfire in the Donnelly Training Area southeast of Fairbanks.
The helicopters were over rugged mountainous terrain that was steep, heavily forested and deep in snow, Pennell said.
The accident happened about 50 miles east of Healy, Alaska. The cause of the crash is still unknown and is under investigation.
The spokesman said the helicopters were flying at about 6,000 feet mean sea level and no weather or visual restrictions were known at the time of the collision.
The soldiers killed were Chief Warrant Officer 3 Christopher Robert Eramo, 39, of Oneonta, New York; Chief Warrant Officer 2 Kyle D. McKenna, 28, of Colorado Springs, Colorado; and Petty Officer 1 Stewart Duane Wayment, 32, of North Logan, Utah.
Chief Warrant Officer 2 Kyle D. McKenna, 28, of Colorado Springs, Colorado died in the helicopter collision on April 27 when two AH-64 Apache aircraft returned to Fort Wainwright from an aerial gunfire in the Donnelly training area southeast of Fairbanks
Petty Officer 1 Stewart Duane Wayment, 32, of North Logan, Utah, was also killed in the accident that occurred about 50 miles east of Healy, Alaska. The cause of the crash is still unknown and is under investigation
Chief Warrant Officer 3 Christopher Robert Eramo, 39, of Oneonta, New York was killed in the crash. The helicopters were flying at about 6,000 feet sea level and there were no known weather or visual restrictions at the time of the collision, a U.S. Army Alaska spokesman said.
The fourth soldier survived the crash and is in stable condition, according to the spokesman.
On Monday, the plane’s black boxes and other sensitive items were recovered by a team of investigators from the Army Combat Readiness Center, Fort Novosel, Alabama.
The recovered items were returned to Fort Wainwright for further investigation, according to a report.
“The battalion is devastated and mourning the loss of three of our best,” said Lieutenant Colonel Matthew C. Carlsen, the 1-25th AB commander, Fox news reported.
“However, our loss cannot be compared to the suffering and loss experienced by the family members of Chief Warrant Officer 3 Chris Eramo, Chief Warrant Officer 2 Kyle McKenna and Warrant Officer 1 Stewart ‘Stew’ Wayment.”
A private memorial ceremony for the soldiers and their families was held at Fort Wainwright on Thursday.