Planes, and bodies, will be soaring the skies this weekend for the Fort St John International Airshow, which will include performances by the Skyhawks Military Parachute Team.
In advance of the upcoming airshow in the city, Go 98.5 host Kristen Maya took flight with the Skyhawks’ team at the event’s unofficial opening for press. Maya, and an event volunteer, were the first fliers of the show when they came down in the afternoon on August 1.
Going into the event, Maya said she blocked all thoughts of her jump.
“I didn’t think about it once – when people would tell me ‘Kristen you’re jumping out of a plane for the Fort St John International Airshow,’ I would be like, ‘please don’t talk about it,’” said Maya.
The Skyhawks had Maya put a red jumpsuit atop her street clothes and briefed her in preparation for the flight at the North Peace Airport.
“(My tandem Skyhawk partner) did not want to stress me out with so much information,” Maya said – he instructed her to lean into him as they stepped out and scream as they fell towards the ground. This method prevents skydivers from holding their breath and fainting upon landing.
As the plane’s propellors roared and its tires left the runway, Dancing Queen by ABBA began playing on the loudspeaker, a regular song on Maya’s rotation for her pop radio show in the morning.
Their flight circled the airport and surrounding areas as they reached the appropriate altitude to jump. After about ten minutes, the Skyhawks began raining down and deploying their Canadian flag parachutes around the grassy area behind the runway.
“I was screaming during the free fall, and then once the parachute deployed, I spun, I did some tricks,” said Maya. “Like that was my own personal rollercoaster.”
Upon landing, Maya celebrated with her tandem partner, she said she felt amazing after jumping out of the Skyhawks’ C-GUWW plane.
“I felt like I was on a mission in the army, or Grand Theft Auto, and I accomplished the mission,” she quipped.
The airshow will be open to the public on August 2 and 3 – other events will include a performance by the Canadian Forces Snowbirds, an Erickson Aircraft Collection, and more.
