AIR I GO AGAIN; Gulf War hero John Nichol jumps from a plane for the first time since he landed in arms of the Iraqis.THE last time John Nichol
Hollow-eyed, battered and dazed daze tr.v. dazed, daz·ing, daz·es 1. To stun, as with a heavy blow or shock; stupefy. 2. To dazzle, as with strong light. n. A stunned or bewildered condition. , the RAF navigator was paraded on Iraqi TV Iraqi TV was the primary TV station in Iraq during the Saddam Hussein era. Until the collapse of Saddam Hussein's regime in April 2003, its' main coverage was patriotic music, government news and propaganda. It was bombed off air in the 2003 Invasion of Iraq. in a scene that created one of the starkest images of the Gulf War. Those terrifying ter·ri·fy tr.v. ter·ri·fied, ter·ri·fy·ing, ter·ri·fies 1. To fill with terror; make deeply afraid. See Synonyms at frighten. 2. To menace or threaten; intimidate. experiences have haunted him since the moment his Tornado was shot down in January 1991. But yesterday, John, 34, finally put his demons Demons See also devil; evil; ghosts; hell; spirits and spiritualism. ademonist one who denies the existence of the devil or demons. bogyism, bogeyism recognition of the existence of demons and goblins. to rest as he plucked up the courage to parachute again. On a perfect summer day in Oxfordshire, he was strapped to RAF parachute instructor Sgt Dennis Murphy for the tandem leap. After a safe landing, John said: "I've obviously got pretty horrible memories of jumping out of planes. "The last time I did it, the plane had turned into a fireball fireball, very bright meteor leaving a trail in the sky that can remain visible for several minutes; often a distinct sound, perhaps caused by very low frequency radio waves, is associated with it. and I was landing in enemy territory. "My heart was beating so fast that I thought it was coming out of my chest. I really thought I was going to die. They told me they were going to kill me and meant it." He added: "But I'm pleased I've done it again. I think I've finally laid a ghost to rest and showed I haven't lost the nerve." John had invited me along to jump with him from 12,000ft - filmed by a fellow parachutist. He was all smiles as we boarded a small plane at RAF Weston-on-the-Green RAF Weston-on-the-Green is a Royal Air Force station located near the village of Weston-on-the-Green in Oxfordshire, England. The station comes under the control of the nearby RAF Brize Norton. It is used for parachute training for the UK military. The No. . But the laughter subsided as we climbed through the cloud. For a man held captive for so long with his Tornado pilot John Peters, this was almost a nightmare re-visited. Suddenly the rear doors opened automatically and John shook his head in disbelief. His face drained white, he shuffled nervously to the edge of the plane for the big plunge. The next second, he was hurtling freefall towards earth at a terrifying 120mph. Only at 5,000ft did partner Dennis - a veteran of 2,000 jumps - pull the main chute and slow the dive down to a more graceful 30mph. A minute later, they had landed without so much as a scratch. John, who quit as an RAF Flight Lieutenant flight lieutenant Noun a junior commissioned officer in an air force in 1996, said: "Leaving the plane was the worst moment. "But I suppose this time I was able to savour the whole experience a little more." His jump raised pounds 5,000 for the Springfield School for children with special needs in Witney, Oxfordshire. John, now a writer with a novel out called Vanishing Point, added: "Whatever the cause I shan't be brave enough to do it again. But at least it was a friendlier welcoming party when I landed this time." |
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