Tourist dies at California skydiving center after apparent midair collision

A skydiver killed last week in a jump at Skydive Perris in Southern California has been identified by the Riverside County Sheriff’s Office as 57-year-old Pascal Pierre Petetin, a resident of Tahiti. Petetin died Thursday afternoon after an apparent midair collision involving a group of experienced skydivers visiting the Riverside County drop zone, according to statements from Skydive Perris and law enforcement.

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Riverside County sheriff’s deputies were dispatched at 1:52 p.m. on May 28 to the area of Interstate 215 and Nuevo Road following reports of an air emergency. Deputies located Petetin in a field east of the freeway near Fourth Street, where he was pronounced dead at the scene, sheriff’s office spokesperson Sgt. Robert Martinez told SFGATE on Monday.

A second skydiver was found on the west side of the freeway and was transported to a local hospital in critical condition. A third skydiver was located uninjured. The investigation remains ongoing, Martinez said.

A statement from Skydive Perris described the three skydivers as friends visiting from overseas who were all highly experienced jumpers using their own equipment rather than participating in tandem jumps. The company said all three successfully deployed their parachutes and suggested there may have been a collision between two of the skydivers during the fall.

The fatality comes less than two years after another deadly accident at Skydive Perris. In August 2024, instructor Devrey LaRiccia Chase and tandem student Kayla Black died after encountering powerful “dust devils” during a descent to the landing area. Skydive Perris officials said disturbed air caused a hard impact, while Chase’s husband later said that a second dust devil sent the parachute canopy into a downward spiral just moments before the pair struck the ground.

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The United States Parachute Association, a private industry group that lobbies for limited regulation in the sport, reported that there were 16 fatalities at U.S. drop zones last year. In 2024, an SFGATE investigation found that a single drop zone in Lodi had been linked to 28 deaths since 1985, highlighting longstanding concerns about skydiving oversight. The investigation found no federal agency is tasked with determining the causes of skydiving fatalities and that much of the sport is governed through industry self-regulation.