A skydiving company has spoken out after a father of six tragically lost his life, confirming that his parachute opened correctly.
Roger Goltz, a computer technician from Jervis Bay on the New South Wales south coast, died at the weekend, leaving behind his wife Kelly and six children aged between 14 and 25.
Mr Goltz was an experienced skydiver and had completed about 80 jumps before Saturday’s accident.
While his parachute opened perfectly, Mr Goltz is known to have turned too low and too fast due to the wind, putting him at the wrong angle for landing.
Mr Goltz suffered a catastrophic brain injury following the impact. He was placed on a respirator at the scene of the accident before being taken to hospital, where he was later pronounced dead.
“Roger and my 18-year-old son Kai had gone skydiving as they always do. Kai saw his dad go down but didn’t realise it was him until he saw his shoe,” Ms Goltz told Daily Mail Australia.
Mrs. Goltz, whose four of her six children live at home, is now worried she may not be able to keep her home since the skydiving was not covered by her life insurance.
Skydive Oz in Moruya confirmed that Roger’s parachute opened and functioned as intended.
Roger Goltz, who lives in Jervis Bay on the New South Wales south coast, died at the weekend, leaving behind his wife and six children.
Mr Goltz is an experienced skydiver and had completed about 80 jumps, many of them with his teenage son, before Saturday’s accident.
Chief instructor Paul Smith, who was at the launch area when the incident occurred, said safety is always his top priority.
“At Skydive Oz, we do everything we can to make it as safe as possible for all of our members, regardless of their experience level, and the close-knit skydiving community here is devastated by what has occurred,” he said in a statement.
“We are incredibly grateful to the first responders and emergency services personnel who provided first aid and arranged for him to be flown by helicopter to Canberra.”
Australian Skydiving Federation chief executive Stephen Porter said an investigation had been launched into the incident.
“Our thoughts are with the man’s family and everyone involved in this tragic time,” he said.
‘A training officer arrived at the scene at Moruya Heads on Saturday evening to begin a thorough investigation into the cause of the incident.’
TO GoFundMe A page has been set up to help support his family, who say they have been left with an “irreplaceable void in our hearts”.
“Roger was always looking for the next adventure and he loved his children, I guess he was one of them,” Ms. Goltz said.
‘The children are devastated and wonder if he was hurt or scared and what that means for the two girls and who will walk them down the aisle.
‘They just lost their best friend.
“All you had to do was imagine it and he would make it happen.”
Ms Goltz said a fellow skydiver with 40 years’ experience told her he had seen similar flips go wrong in the air, but never one that cost a life.
A GoFundMe has been set up to help support his family, who say they have been left with an “irreplaceable void in our hearts.”
He was extremely close to his six children.
Mr. Goltz (far right) had gone on several skydives with his teenage son Kai.
He is now waiting for the coroner’s report to try to understand what went wrong.
The family is supported by Mr. and Mrs. Goltz’s parents.
“Roger loved life and his family,” Ms. Goltz said.
A memorial service for Mr. Goltz will be held next Thursday.
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