• Video
  • Shop
  • Culture
  • Family
  • Wellness
  • Food
  • Living
  • Style
  • Travel
  • News
  • Book Club
  • Newsletter
  • Privacy Policy
  • Your US State Privacy Rights
  • Children's Online Privacy Policy
  • Interest-Based Ads
  • Terms of Use
  • Do Not Sell My Info
  • Contact Us
  • © 2026 ABC News
  • News

Skydiver Rescued in Mid-Air After Suffering Seizure

1:40
See Skydiver Rescued in Mid-Air After Suffering Seizure
ByABC NEWS
March 02, 2015, 3:03 PM

— -- The tense moments when a skydiver fell unconscious in mid-air were all caught on camera.

The skydiver, 22-year-old Christopher Jones, was doing a routine training dive to become a skydive instructor when he jumped from a plane 12,000 feet over Western Australia.

At 9,000 feet, Jones suddenly fell unconscious as he suffered a seizure in mid-air.

For 30 terrifying seconds, Jones, who suffers from epilepsy but believed his condition was under control, plummeted towards the ground at 124 miles-per-hour.

Jones, who was visibly convulsing during his descent, fell further and further away from his instructor, Sheldon McFarlane.

Just as Jones reached 4,000 feet, a quick-thinking McFarlane was able to reach Jones and pull his ripcord, releasing Jones’ parachute.

“I was just glad to get to him, stop him turning and make sure he had a parachute above his head,” said McFarlane, an instructor at the West Australia Skydiving Academy.

Jones said he regained consciousness another 1,000 feet after the rescue, at around 3,000 feet.

“Then the next thing I know I wake up at 3,000 feet, thankfully underneath a fully inflated parachute,” he said.

The near-death accident occurred last November while Jones was on stage five of what he calls the school’s Accelerated Free Fall program. He posted the video of his fall on YouTube Sunday, where it has already been viewed nearly four million times.

“He’s a hero. He’s a massive hero,” Jones said of McFarlane.

Up Next in News—

This San Francisco shop is run completely by an AI agent

April 23, 2026

Mother charged after teen son allegedly hits and injures 81-year-old veteran while riding e-motorcycle

April 23, 2026

UK bill banning smoking products for those born after 2008 is one step away from becoming law

April 22, 2026

Pilot killed in Florida plane crash hailed as hero

April 21, 2026

Shop GMA Favorites

ABC will receive a commission for purchases made through these links.

Sponsored Content by Taboola

The latest lifestyle and entertainment news and inspiration for how to live your best life - all from Good Morning America.
  • Contests
  • Terms of Use
  • Privacy Policy
  • Do Not Sell My Info
  • Children’s Online Privacy Policy
  • Advertise with us
  • Your US State Privacy Rights
  • Interest-Based Ads
  • About Nielsen Measurement
  • Press
  • Feedback
  • Shop FAQs
  • ABC News
  • ABC
  • All Videos
  • All Topics
  • Sitemap

© 2026 ABC News
  • Privacy Policy— 
  • Your US State Privacy Rights— 
  • Children's Online Privacy Policy— 
  • Interest-Based Ads— 
  • Terms of Use— 
  • Do Not Sell My Info— 
  • Contact Us— 

© 2026 ABC News