Veteran skydiver Mike Richard, 88, from Tisbury might not be throwing himself out of planes any more, but he still enjoys a high-octane flight
Mike was a founder member of the British Parachute Club, which operated from Fairoaks Aerodrome in Surrey, where he and his small group of friends started the sport of skydiving in Britain.

Veteran skydiver Mike Richard

Mike became British Skydiving Champion, and in 1958 represented Great Britain at an international meeting in Paris, competing against Russian, American, French, Israeli and German enthusiasts. He went on to start the SAS Skydivers, the first skydiving club in the British Army; training club members from the regiment at Thruxton.
He might not be strapping on a parachute, but Mike’s still got a head for heights and from recently enjoyed a biplane flight over Wiltshire.
Mike took off from Compton Abbas in an American Stearman, the nearest biplane to the great Tiger Moth, used by the early skydivers. Back in the day they would climb out of the cockpit, onto the wing of the aircraft, take a step backwards and stabilise into a freefall position before opening the chute in time to land accurately on a marker in the centre of the airfield. Today though, Mike just enjoyed the view!