(A familiar Midwest cycling name appears towards the bottom of the article)
Parachutist Who Got Snagged On Plane Was Outdoors Enthusiast
Monday October 25, 2004
TAYLORVILLE, Ill. (AP) A bicycle racer and marathon runner who took up
skydiving about five years ago was killed when his parachute got tangled
in a single-engine plane that crashed in a bean field west of this
central Illinois city, authorities said.
Four other members of a Taylorville-based parachuting club jumped to
safety, along with the pilot of the Cessna 206 aircraft.
Investigators were trying to determine Monday whether the tangled
parachute caused the crash or if the plane stalled as club members
prepared to jump.
Bill Jensen, 38, of Springfield died in the crash Sunday a quarter-mile
west of Taylorville Municipal Airport, about 25 miles southeast of
Springfield, Christian County chief deputy coroner Rick Sutton said.
Jensen, who also was a member of competitive bicycling and running
clubs in Springfield, was preparing to jump from the aircraft with
other members of the Mid-America Sport Parachute Club, authorities said.
Sutton said Jensen was making his way to the plane's diving platform
when his parachute deployed prematurely. He said the main parachute
became tangled around the tail of the plane, jamming the rudder and
sending the plane into a spin, based on an investigation by the
coroner's office.
The other skydivers and the pilot thought Jensen had cut himself loose
from the tangled main parachute and jumped to safety, Sutton said.
Meanwhile, Jensen's reserve parachute became caught on the plane's wing,
Sutton said. Though Jensen was wearing a helmet, his neck slammed into
the wing, likely killing him instantly, Sutton said. He said he did not
know whether Jensen's main parachute was cut loose from the tail.
Taylorville Police Chief Greg Brotherton, however, said some survivors
reported the plane had mechanical problems and stalled as they were
preparing to jump. Jensen's parachute caught in the plane's tail as it
began its spin from about 10,000 feet, while the other five aboard
parachuted safely, the chief said.
The crash is being investigated by the Federal Aviation Administration
and the National Transportation Safety Board.
FAA spokesman Elizabeth Isham Cory said preliminary reports indicate
the tangled parachute caused the crash and that no mechanical problems
had been identified.
``From our standpoint, that's where it stands right now. That could
change,'' Cory said.
The NTSB, which is leading the investigation, declined to comment on
a possible cause. A final report should be completed within a year,
said Mitch Gallo, an NTSB air safety investigator in Chicago.
Jensen competed in bicycle races around the Midwest until he took up
skydiving about five years ago, said Gary Doering, a longtime friend
and director of the Springfield-based Team Mack Racing club.
He also was a member of the Springfield Road Runners Club and had
completed two marathons in the past three weeks, according to the
club's Web site.
``He just took everything to its fullest. He was a real go-getter,''
said Doering, who worked with Jensen in the state's Department of
Central Management Services.
Sutton said the pilot, Dean Baxter of Jacksonville, was wearing an
older model parachute and suffered minor injuries when he was jarred
during a hard landing. The other club members Matt Flannell of
Taylorville, Jaco Duvenhage of Farmersville and Matt and Barnett
Glisson of Springfield were not injured, Sutton said.
No one on the ground was hurt in the crash, authorities said.
(Copyright 2004 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)