Record Skydiving Attempt Slated For Ellington Airport [UPDATED]

ELLINGTON, CT — On any given weekend, Ellington residents and passersby alike can enjoy the view of seeing brightly-colored parachutes dropping almost endlessly from the sky, drifting downward until touchdown at Ellington Airport. This Wednesday will be a tad different, however, as a goal of 100 jumps in a single day will attempt to set a new Connecticut record - by one man.

On June 16, Doug Hendrix, a member of Connecticut Parachutists Inc. (CPI), will try to shatter the current unofficial record of 61 jumps in a day. The event was originally scheduled for Tuesday, but has been moved due to a forecast of inclement weather.

"We are aiming for 100 jumps," he told Patch. "The plan is to start at sunrise (5:14 a.m.) and jump until 100 are completed. If all goes to plan, that should be done around 3 p.m. Depending on how things go, we may do more than 100 jumps."

Hendrix began skydiving at CPI in May 2012, and has accumulated nearly 3,000 jumps. He competed on the skydiving team at UConn, and in 2019, he was a member of the U.S. Parachute Team, representing his country at the World Cup in Eloy, Arizona on an 8-person formation skydiving team.

He will have plenty of assistance in his bid to set a new state record.

"I have a team of ground support that includes five parachute packers, two pilots and three other ground crew members," he said. "I will have at least five parachutes that I will be cycling through. I will be exiting the plane at approximately 2,500 feet over the ground, where I will immediately pull my parachute after exiting, and then hustle to the ground for a safe landing."

Hendrix estimates each jump will take about five minutes, from boarding the plane, takeoff, climb, exit and landing.

A raffle is being conducted as part of the event, to benefit the Ellington Fire Department.

"They regularly come to our facility to perform training to be prepared in the event of an accident," Hendrix said. "They have been excellent to us as well as the surrounding community in times of need. As a way of saying thank you to them, 100 percent of the proceeds will be donated to the Ellington Fire Department."

Luann’s Bakery & Café, The Modern Milkman, Homestead Comfort and Old School Harley Davidson are among the local businesses supporting CPI's effort. Raffle information is available here.

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