Wingsuit skydiver was decapitated by plane’s wing

An experienced wingsuit skydiver smashed into a plane’s wing and was decapitated just 20 seconds into his jump in the south of France, it was revealed during the pilot’s manslaughter trial.

Nicolas Galy, 40, was the first of two skydivers who were released from the single-engine Pilatus plane at 14,000 feet over the town of Bouloc-en-Quercy in July 2018, reported The Times.

Moments later, the aircraft’s pilot, identified only as 64-year-old Alain C, rapidly descended and caught up with the skydivers as they were gliding in their wingsuits.

The plane’s left wing and a strut clipped Galy, beheading him, the court in the city of Montauban heard this week.

The victim’s emergency parachute then opened, and his lifeless body landed in a field.

In the wake of Galy’s death, the pilot was charged with manslaughter, with prosecutors arguing that his errors caused the horrific accident.  


Stock image of a wingsuit-wearing skydiver
Skydiver Nicolas Galy, 40, was decapitated by a plane’s wing during a jump in France in July 2018 (stock image).
sindret – stock.adobe.com

Alain defended himself in court, insisting that he had done nothing wrong and that Galy “did not follow the expected course and should never have been on that course.”

According to the pilot, Galy, an engineer and skydiver with 226 jumps under his belt, was parallel to the plane, and Alain thought he was “further south.”

“I think my flight path made sense,” the pilot testified. “This has been the tragedy of my life but I am not at fault.”