A STUDENT skydiver who survived after both his parachutes failed on his first jump has taken to the skies again.

Liam Byrne, 18, jumped from 3,500ft above Peterlee Parachute Centre, in east Durham, on Saturday, little over a month after his first fall almost killed him.

It was his fourth jump since the ill-fated unplanned free fall when the Northumbria University student's first parachute became twisted and his reserve got tangled in the first.

He survived after he landed in a tree, 30ft above the ground, just missing a church and a 5ft spiked metal fence.

Mr Byrne, from Doncaster, South Yorkshire, who suffered only a bruised side and scraped hand, said: “The second time I jumped I was really, really, really nervous, and when I was in the plane I thought ‘I will do this one and then won’t do any more’.

“But then when I was in the air I thought ‘I have got to do this again’ and that was it.”

At the weekend Mr Byrne, a first year English literature student, did his first of three dummy pull jumps that will allow him to qualify as a solo sky diver.

He added: “I was not nervous this time. I was worried that I would not be able to pull the dummy cord because other than that I was looking forward to it.

“I always look forward to them now, which is good. I am surprised to get to that stage so quickly.”

Despite is frightening first experience he is keen to continue with the sport, but he did not tell his parents he was jumping again until after he was back on terra firma.

He said: “You just have to get on with it. It is the only way to deal with it.

“When everything had gone right, it was pretty good so I told them afterwards and they were just happy everything had gone okay.

“But they did not want to know before. They just said if you are going to do it again, just tell us afterwards so we don’t worry.”