Gregory Coates, aged 36, was identified by the Boulder County Coroner’s Office as the individual who lost his life in a skydiving incident near Vance Brand Airport, Longmont, Colorado. The unfortunate event transpired on January 27, 2024, a Saturday.
Coates was participating in a skydive with Mile-Hi Skydiving Center, a well-known skydiving service provider located at the airport, when Longmont Public Safety responded to the accident site around 3:27 p.m.
A resident of a mountain community near the Denver Metro area, Coates was wearing a wingsuit at the time of his jump.
This specialized attire allows skydivers to glide through the air by increasing their surface area with fabric wings. However, a parachute remains essential for a safe descent.
Initial reports suggest that both Coates’ main and reserve parachutes failed to deploy before he hit the ground. This malfunction is the primary focus of the ongoing investigation.
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has joined the investigation, scrutinizing the packing of both parachutes and the adherence to flight rules by the involved pilot and aircraft.
Tony Molinaro, an FAA spokesperson, stated that the FAA’s role is to investigate these specific factors, not to determine the cause of the accident.
Mile-Hi Skydiving Center, where Coates was a client, is a member of the United States Parachute Association. The center presents itself as a top provider of skydiving experiences and maintains a strong emphasis on safety and quality service on its website.
Despite safety measures, skydiving carries inherent risks. The FAA records an annual death toll of 30 to 40 skydivers nationwide, considered “extraordinarily high.” However, the U.S. Parachute Association highlights a reduction in skydiving-related deaths over the years, with a low of 10 fatalities in over 3.5 million jumps in 2021.
The Longmont Police Department and the Boulder County Coroner’s Office are working with the FAA to uncover the circumstances that led to Coates’s death.
This incident is the sixth skydiving fatality associated with Mile-Hi Skydiving since 2018.
