A 26-year-old Sun Valley sky diver plummeted to her death Sunday February 23, 1964, when her parachute and safety parachute failed to open. Miss Diane Richards of 8154 De Garmo Ave landed in a plowed field northeast of Arvin in the San Joaquin Valley after falling 3,500 feet. The chutes of three other skydivers who jumped from the plane at the same time opened safely.
Pilot Gene F. McMahon, 34, of Compton, told Kern County sheriff's investigators that Miss Richards parachute came out of the pack but failed to open. A second chute also failed to function.
The group from the Antelope Valley Parasports Center originally planned to skydive in the Lancaster area, McMahon said, but the wind was too strong. He said Miss Richards had jumped more than 20 times before.
Published in the Burbank Daily Review, Monday, February 24, 1964
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Obituary
Burbank Daily Review, Wednesday, February 26, 1964
Diane Faye Richards
Funeral services for Diane Faye Richards, 26, will be held Thursday, at 10 am at the Fillbach Bailey Chapel. Mrs. Richards, 8154 De Garmo Ave, Sun Valley, died Sunday when her parachute failed to open during a sky diving exhibition in Kern County.
She is survived by her mother, Mrs. Bernice Schilling of Burbank, a daughter, Denise; a sister, Mrs. Karen Waid of Hollywood, her grandfather, Gus Schilling of Burbank and her grandmother, Mrs. H.L. Dean of San Diego. Rev. Arthur W. Pelkey of Avalon Community Church, Catalina, will officiate at the services. Interment will be at Glen Haven Memorial Park.
Mrs. Richards was raised in Burbank and was graduated from Burbank High School. She was employed by Pacific Airmotive Corp. for two and a half years. She was a member of Antelope Valley Parasports Center.
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