A skydiving instructor died after separating from his tandem partner Saturday near Nashville, Tennessee, and rescuers pulled the surviving skydiver from a tree, authorities said.
The Metropolitan Nashville Police Department (MNPD) discovered the 35-year-old instructor’s body in a clearing in the woods near Ashland City Highway, according to a post. The other skydiver survived with an open parachute caught in a tall tree.
“This skydiver became separated at the plane from a tandem rig with an instructor. The instructor is presumed to have fallen from the sky without a parachute,” the MNPD said before finding the instructor’s remains. Authorities did not identify either individual.
Nashville Fire Department (NFD) crews lowered the living skydiver with a ladder and a pulley system, the NFD posted on X. The survivor was “awake, alert & in stable condition after being suspended for hours.”
Go Skydive Nashville said they coordinated a jump connected to the incident and called the death a “tragic loss of life” in a statement, NBC News reported. The company said it is cooperating with investigators. (RELATED: 73-Year-Old Skydiver Falls To Death In Arizona After Parachute Fails To Fully Deploy)
UPDATE: NFD rescuer safely reached the parachute jumper, freed him from the harness & assisted him down the ladder using a pulley system. Patient is awake, alert & in stable condition after being suspended for hours. Patient will be transported to the hospital as a precaution. pic.twitter.com/S6LY6fZwI5
— Nashville Fire Dept (@NashvilleFD) October 4, 2025
The company’s tandem instructors “are highly trained” and “must undergo extensive training and certification before even attempting a tandem skydive with a real student,” according to their website. They receive certifications from the United States Parachute Association.
Nine of 3.88 million reported skydives in 2024 led to the demise of civilians, a record low number since tracking kicked off back in 1961, according to USPA data. The association attributes most skydiving accidents to “simple human error.”
The Federal Aviation Administration will investigate the incident, the MNPD said. Police used a helicopter to search the area before locating the instructor’s body.
Go Skydive Nashville’s website said instructors wear both main and reserve parachutes, with all equipment undergoing “stringent checks before each jump.”