Forensic Analysis of Parachute Deaths

Deaths associated with parachuting are very uncommon. However, these deaths do tend to be "high profile" in the traditional and social media. When forensic pathologists examine the deceased after a fatal parachuting incident, the anatomical cause of death is usually not in question. For most forensic pathologists, it is usually the case that we will have very limited knowledge of parachuting equipment or the mechanics of a typical successful parachute jump. As such, the investigation of the death should involve a multidisciplinary approach with an appropriate expert providing the formal forensic examination of the parachuting equipment. We have endeavored to describe, in simple terms, the usual components of a typical parachute rig, a precis of the sequence of events in a routine skydive and BASE jump, and the various types of malfunctions that may occur. Last, we present a case report of a BASE jump fatality to illustrate how an expert examination of the BASE jumper's gear aided the medicolegal investigation of the death with some important aspects in the forensic examination of the jumper's equipment.