Air Force member dies in rappelling fall before UTSA-Navy game — SkimNews
Get the Sports newsletter
Daily sports — scores, transfers, the storylines from the leagues you actually follow. Free.
- Air Force service member assigned to the 6th Combat Training Squadron, Detachment 2, based at Nellis Air Force Base, died from injuries sustained after falling during a pregame rappelling demonstration at the Alamodome before Saturday's UTSA-Navy game, per Nellis Air Force Base Public Affairs.
- Four officers were scheduled to rappel to the field 15 minutes before kickoff as part of UTSA's Salute to Armed Forces & Veterans game; one appeared to lose control while descending, slid down the rope and crashed to the turf, and was transported to a local hospital where he died.
- The Air Force has not released the service member's identity, and the incident remains under investigation.
- The rappelling specialists are tactical air control party airmen who embed with Army and Marine units to direct air and artillery strikes, with training that includes rapid rope drops from helicopters 100 feet or more above the ground.
- UTSA delayed kickoff by 10 minutes and played the game before a crowd of over 23,000; head coach Jeff Traylor called the accident "heartbreaking" and "tragic," saying the energy in the stadium "was just gone" as players took the field.
- UTSA activated well-being services for faculty, staff and students; President Taylor Eighmy said "what was intended to be a day of camaraderie, tradition and celebration has been marked by profound sadness."
Why it matters: A pregame tribute meant to honor the military instead ended in a fatal training-style accident witnessed by more than 23,000 fans, forcing UTSA to activate campus well-being services and prompting an Air Force investigation into what went wrong during a high-risk demonstration.
Ask SkimNews
