NTSB Preliminary Report Sheds Light on Copilot Mid-Air Departure

Copilot ‘got up from his seat, removed his headset, apologized, and departed the airplane via the aft ramp door.’

Tuesday, August 16, 2022 at 06:16 PM ET

Verified

The CASA 212 is a fixed-gear design with a ramp that lowers in the rear to allow for the egress of skydivers. [File Photo Courtesy: US Air Classics]

Key Takeaways:

A skydiving aircraft's copilot intentionally exited the plane in mid-flight without a parachute after an emergency landing damaged the aircraft's landing gear.
The NTSB confirmed the copilot's intentional departure, which occurred after he became visibly upset about the hard landing and apologized before leaving the aircraft via the aft ramp door.
The surviving pilot made an emergency landing at Raleigh-Durham International Airport, sustaining minor injuries, while the copilot's body was found 20 miles from the airport.

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According to the National Transportation Safety Board, the copilot of a skydiving aircraft that made an emergency landing July 29 at Raleigh, North Carolina, intentionally departed the aircraft in flight without a parachute. According to the surviving pilot, the copilot was upset about the hard landing that damaged the airplane.

The report, released Tuesday, comes nearly three weeks after the CASA 212-200 was substantially damaged by a hard landing near Raeford, North Carolina.