Woman, 29, dies attempting new skydiving method

A professional Australian skydiver has died in the United States while reportedly testing out a new jumping method.

Australian champion skydiver Melissa Porter died while testing a high-risk manoeuvre called “swooping” in Texas, leaving behind a grieving family and a legacy of achievements in the sport.

Melissa Porter, a 29-year-old champion skydiver from Australia, died while testing a high-risk manoeuvre called “swooping” in Texas.

Ms Porter, an instructor at Skydive Spaceland Houston, attempted the manoeuvre on June 24 but had a hard landing and fell into shallow water.

According to witnesses, her parachute was deployed during the manoeuvre but was too close to the ground. Despite being rushed to a nearby hospital, Ms Porter was pronounced dead.

Investigators did not find any blunt force trauma and were uncertain if she had a medical emergency during the dive. The cause of death will be determined by the Galveston County Medical Examiner’s Office.

Ms Porter’s mother, Vonnie Porter expressed her grief, stating that skydiving was her daughter’s passion.

The grieving mum had told Australia’s 9NEWS: “She’s my baby and she’s not coming home” adding that her daughter loved the sport. “That was her happy place. She’ll forever be in the sky roaming the world now.”

Witnesses told investigators that when the woman jumped out of the plane and got her gear out, her parachute deployed but she had a hard landing on the property and into a shallow body of water.

Ms Porter had achieved various accolades in the sport and recently won gold at the Australian Skydiving Championships.

ADVERTISEMENT

The Australian government’s Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade offered condolences and assistance to Ms Porter’s family.

Swooping is a manoeuvre in skydiving that involves high-speed manoeuvres close to the ground or water before rapidly levelling off for landing.

Ms Porter was determined to pursue more opportunities in skydiving after she won gold at the Australian Skydiving Championships, along with her partner, Josh Tassicker.

She had stated at the time that she wished to focus on practising and improving her skills as a professional skydiver and that as an instructor, she aimed to encourage more women to join the sport.

She had told the Sound Telegraph: “For so long the sport has been male-dominated… There’s this idea that women are too afraid or they’re too small, or they’re too light, all of these things and it’s absolutely not true, they are 100 per cent capable.”