# Incident 20131203025079I: Dehavilland DHC-6 TWIN OTTER, Eloy, AZ, December 3, 2013 - Type: FAA incident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported - Date: December 3, 2013, 16:50 local time - Place: Eloy, AZ - Damage: No damage - Phase of flight: Landing: Approach - Operating rules: Parachute jumping (Part 105) - Location: 32.7559° N, 111.5548° W: Placed by OpenAirDocs: center of Eloy, AZ, within about 6 miles (OpenAirDocs) - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=32.7559&lon=-111.5548&mi=10 - Aircraft: N924MA, registered now (https://openairdocs.org/aircraft/N924MA) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry model: Dehavilland DHC-6 TWIN OTTER (registry code 2802606, https://openairdocs.org/model/dehavilland-dhc-6-twin-otter) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry engine: U/A Canada PT6 SER 578HP (registry code 61501, https://openairdocs.org/engine/u-a-canada-pt6-ser-578hp) (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: DEHAVILLAND DHC-6 TWIN OTTER - Reported engine: U/A CANADA PT6 SER 578HP - People aboard: 4 - Fatal injuries: 2 - Other injuries: 0 - FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/) - Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20131203025079I ## Narrative As the FAA filed it, in capitals; the FAA replaces private details with ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^. WHILE CONDUCTING A 200 PERSON FREEFALL FORMATION JUMP TWO OF THE PARTICIPANTS COLLIDED WHILE UNDER CANOPY AT APPROXIMATELY 300 FEET AGL. BOTH JUMPERS HAD SUCCESSFULLY COMPLETED THE FREEFALL PORTION OF THE JUMP, HAD DEPLOYED THEIR CANOPIES, AND WERE DESCENDING UNDER FULLY OPERATIONAL PARACHUTES. THEY DESCENDED UNDER CANOPY AS NORMAL AND WERE MANEUVERING FOR LANDING AT THE TIME THEY COLLIDED. THERE WERE NO EYE WITNESSES TO THE ACTUAL COLLISION. ALL WITNESSES? STATEMENTS ONLY PROVIDED INFORMATION ABOUT THE MOMENTS AFTER THE COLLISION. OTHER JUMPERS AND WITNESSES ON THE GROUND REMEMBER SEEING NO ABNORMAL OR ERRATIC CANOPY MANEUVERS IN THE AREA MOMENTS PRIOR TO THE COLLISION. WITNESS STATEMENTS INDICATE THAT THE COLLISION WAS HEARD ON THE GROUND AND WHEN WERE SPINNING AND DESCENDING AT AN ACCELERATED SPEED. THERE WAS INSUFFICIENT ALTITUDE FOR THE JUMPERS TO DEPLOY THEIR RESERVE CANOPIES AND THEY BOTH IMPACTED THE EARTH AT THE SAME TIME WITH THEIR CANOPIES STILL ENTANGLED. ONE JUMPER (BERND SCHMEHL) WAS PRONOUNCED DEAD AT THE SCENE. EMERGENCY MEDICAL RESPONSE PERSONNEL ATTEMPTED TO RESUSCITATE THE OTHER JUMPER (KEIRON O?ROURKE) AND HE WAS TRANSPORTED TO THE HOSPITAL. HE LATER SUCCUMBED TO HIS INJURIES AND WAS PRONOUNCED DEAD AT THE HOSPITAL. THE JUMP OCCURRED AT THE END OF THE DAY AFTER 4 PREVIOUS SUCCESSFUL JUMPS BY BOTH PARTICIPANTS. THE SKY WAS CLEAR AND THE WIND WAS LIGHT 3-5 MPH OUT OF THE SOUTH-SOUTHWEST. JUMP COORDINATORS HAD BRIEFED ALL PARTICIPANTS TO COMPLY WITH PROPER LINE-UP WHILE ON FINAL LANDING DESCENT AND ALL JUMPERS IN THE LOAD WERE LANDING IN A SOUTHERLY DIRECTION. THE SUN WAS SETTING AT THE TIME THIS FORMATION LOAD WAS DESCENDING UNDER CANOPY AND IT IS POSSIBLE THAT THE SUNLIGHT WAS A FACTOR IN VISIBILITY FOR THOSE DESCENDING TO LAND. EXAMINATION OF THE EQUIPMENT WAS CONDUCTED ON DEC. 5 & 7, 2013 BY AN INDEPENDENT SOURCE. THE FOLLOWING IS INFORMATION REGARDING THE JUMPERS EXPERIENCE AND THE EQUIPMENT INVOLVED: KIERON O?ROURKE JUMP EXPERIENCE NOTED ON SKYDIVE ARIZONA REGISTRATION DOCUMENT: TOTAL JUMPS: 849 JUMPS IN LAST 6 MONTHS: 100 TIME IN SPORT: 4 YRS, 2 MONTHS HARNESS /CONTAINER SUNPATH JAVELIN #35791 COLOR: BLACK/ROYAL BLUE (PHOTO #8595) RESERVE CANOPY PERFORMANCE DESIGNS OPTIMUM #OP-0143-003641 COLOR: ORANGE (PHOTO #8633) MAIN CANOPY AERODYNE PILOT 124 #PT-124-12490 COLOR: LIME GREEN/WHITE/BLACK (PHOTO #8604) AAD AIRTEC CYPRES 2 #64333 (PHOTO #8620) ACCESSORIES NONE NOTES: NO RESERVE PACKING CARD WAS FOUND ON THE EQUIPMENT. THE RESERVE WAS FOUND INTACT. RIPCORD PULL TEST PERFORMED TO DETERMINE THE OPENING FORCE. MEASUREMENT SHOWED 13.4# WHICH IS WITHIN THE 22# MAXIMUM ALLOWED. (PHOTO: #8624) BERND SCHMEHL JUMP EXPERIENCE NOTED ON SKYDIVE ARIZONA REGISTRATION DOCUMENT: TOTAL JUMPS: 1707 JUMPS IN LAST 6 MONTHS: 80 TIME IN SPORT: 22 YRS HARNESS/CONTAINER THOMAS SPORTS TEARDROP MODEL 103B #6208 COLOR: ROYAL BLUE W/ SEVERE FADING TO ALMOST BLACK (PHOTO # 8673) RESERVE CANOPY PARATEC MODEL SPEED 150 #SP150-0068 COLOR: WHITE (PHOTO #8660) MAIN CANOPY PERFORMANCE DESIGNS SABRE 2-135 #SA135-000560 COLOR: ROYAL BLUE/WHITE/PURPLE (PHOTO #8637) AAD AIRTEC CYPRES 2 #74013 (PHOTO #8676) ACCESSORIES LARSEN & BRUSGARD OPTIMA AUDIO ALTIMETER PARA SPORT ITALIA ANALOG ALTIMETER FULL FACE HELMET WEIGHT BELT NOTES: RESERVE PACKING DATA CARD SHOWS LAST REPACK DATED 1-24-13 BY A GERMAN RIGGER. (PHOTO #8684) EXAMINATION OF THE EQUIPMENT DID NOT REVEAL DAMAGE THAT WOULD HAVE BEEN A CAUSE FOR THE COLLISION ## Other reports on N924MA (7) Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date. - [Incident 20250216001239I](https://openairdocs.org/incident/20250216001239I), Feb 16, 2025: Dehavilland DHC-6 TWIN OTTER (N924MA), Eloy, AZ, No damage. On February 16, 2025, a de havilland Canada DHC-6, conducted parachute operations from Eloy, AZ. There was one fatality. The victim's parachute was deployed… - [Incident 20120215003309I](https://openairdocs.org/incident/20120215003309I), Feb 15, 2012: Dehavilland DHC-6 TWIN OTTER (N924MA), Eloy, AZ, No damage. Skydiver (ke dime) exited the jump bird at approximately 5000 ft AGL for the purposes of practicing a "swooping" landing. (Swooping is a maneuver in which the… - [Incident 20081107854269I](https://openairdocs.org/incident/20081107854269I), Nov 7, 2008: Dhav DHC6TWNOTTER (N924MA), Eloy, AZ, No damage, 1 fatal. Skydiver had completed successful freefall and was descending under a fully deployed canopy. After maneuvering the canopy to a point which was east of the… - [Incident 20070309007429I](https://openairdocs.org/incident/20070309007429I), Mar 9, 2007: Dhav DHC6300 (N924MA), Eloy, AZ, 2 fatal. (-23) According to witnesses, two skydivers collided at approximately 250' above ground level, entangled their canopys, resulting in an out of control spin.… - [Incident 19960806027419I](https://openairdocs.org/incident/19960806027419I), Aug 6, 1996: Dhav DHC6200 (N924MA), Quincy, IL, 1 fatal. Narrative: a parachute jumper received fatal injuries on August 6, 1996 at approximately 1330 CDT after making a turn at too low an altitude. The jumper… - [Incident 19950527031709I](https://openairdocs.org/incident/19950527031709I), May 27, 1995: Dhav DHC6 (N924MA), Eloy, AZ, 1 fatal. Jumpers collided after leaving formation. 2 knocked unconscious and tangled did not deplay 3rd jumper deployed. - [Incident 19921231055599I](https://openairdocs.org/incident/19921231055599I), Dec 31, 1992: Dhav DHC6 (N924MA), Eloy, AZ, 1 fatal. Chutist impacted the ground when her parachute failed to properly deploy. Waited too long to deploy chute. From the FAA Accident/Incident Data System. Reports are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model. For accidents, the NTSB's own investigation is the fuller record. --- OpenAirDocs.org is an independent research project of [Contrail Labs](https://contraillabs.com/). It is not affiliated with the FAA or the NTSB. Source documents are U.S. government works in the public domain.