Skydiving and parachuting is a very popular “sport” in Poland and there are plenty of different dropzones to enjoy or for the beginner, there are many places where skydiving or parachuting (spadochroniarstwo) courses (kursy) are offered. Poland attracts skydivers from around the world and in August 2010, skydivers (spadochroniarze) in Poland broke the European record for the number of people in a formation when 104 people joined together in the air. The team jumped out of five planes at a height of 4,800 metres (15748 feet). The jump was their 15th attempt at breaking the record.
Image by wales_gibbons on flickr.com
Skydiving is one of the most popular items on people’s ‘Bucket List’ and that is due to the fact the the experience of plummeting safely (bezpieczne gwałtowne spadanie) to Earth from a great height is (ekscytujące), breathtaking (zapierające dech w piersiach) and unique (wyjątkowe) and has been widely accepted as one of the most exciting things that you could do. For those people who do not have time to attend a course and learn how to jump by themselves, the tandem jump is a perfect solution. Tandem skydiving provides you with the experience of a jump whilst safely harnessed to an experienced skydiving instructor.
Although, unfortunately it doesn’t always end in a good way…You don’t hear about accidents like this often…but it happens. Just yesterday eleven people were killed and one was injured when a small plane carrying parachutists crashed and burst into flames shortly after takeoff in southern Poland. It wasn’t an accident that happened during skydiving, but before actual skydiving. 11 parachutists and a pilot were on board the twin engine aircraft when it took off for a training flight. A few minutes later it crashed and caught fire in an orchard in the village of Topolów, near Częstochowa. No one was hurt on the ground.
The plane was the property of a private parachuting school based at the small airport of Rudniki.
The cause of the crash is being investigated. Firefighters say that the Piper Navajo aircraft may have been overloaded.
Unfortunately accidents happen…
Do następnego razu… (Till next time…)
