Pasha Palanker, the parachuter who slammed into a scoreboard at Virginia Tech, is no stranger to harrowing situations.
The 17-year Army special operations veteran has made more than 700 jumps with Team Fastrax since retiring from the service.
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In fact, he began parachuting as a way to address PTSD from his military days. According to his website, Palanker received two Purple Hearts and saved the lives of 15 soldiers by confronting a suicide bomber.
“It’s not the first time I’ve walked away from something I shouldn’t,” Palanka said.
On Saturday, April 18, high winds pushed Palanka into the scoreboard at Lane Stadium during festivities before the Virginia Tech spring football game. ABC’s “Good Morning America” shared his story on Monday morning.
Palanka and two other Team Fastrax parachuters jumped with the intention to land on the field. Only one landed in the stadium. Palanker and a teammate, both of whom were carrying large American flags, missed their marks.
Palanker hoped to land on a practice field near the stadium after a gust of wind swept him off course. Then, a second gust took him straight into the scoreboard.
“It happened so fast. It surprised all of us,” Palanker said. “When I was approaching, everything looked fine. Wind picked up as I was getting into the stadium, picked up way above what is expected, and it looked like I was going to land on the crowd, which could have been pretty dangerous.”
The impact damaged the “C” on the Virginia Tech sign atop the scoreboard. Palanker had the wind knocked out of him and suffered a shoulder injury, but is otherwise OK, he told ABC.
According to FireRescue1.com, Palanker dangled at the top of the scoreboard for about 25 minutes before the Blacksburg Volunteer Fire Department rescued him. The spring game started about an hour late.
“I was just really glad that that parachute was hanging on whatever it was hung on because it was a long way down,” Palanker said.