THE plane fell silent as it flew over the spot where - four years to the day - airman Andrew Wilson died in a parachuting accident.

His mother Christine, sister Julie and best friend Ian threw white roses towards the ground below. Then they jumped.

On Thursday, the group remembered Andrew, who was 25, in remarkable and moving style at Shotton Airfield, near Peterlee, County Durham.

The RAF gunner, who served in Cyprus and Iraq and lived in St Helen Auckland, County Durham, fell to his death at the same airfield in 2004.

The trio had come up with the idea of the charity skydive last year because Andrew had always wanted his mother to do a tandem jump with him.

Mrs Wilson, 61, was the first to jump from 10,000ft, and moments after landing she said: "It was fantastic. I would do it again."

She added: "I didn't feel brave, I just felt I had to do it. Now I realise what Andrew got out of it, I realise why he was so obsessive about it."

Ian, 30, who works for Thorn Lighting, in Spennymoor, and is afraid of heights, was next to jump. He said: "I was terrified when I jumped, but it's just an amazing sensation. I'd never done anything like this before."

Finally came Julie, 38, a mental health worker for Tees, Esk and Wear Valley NHS Trust. "It didn't even feel like I was falling," she said. "I am still buzzing."

About £2,000 has so far been collected for charities, including the Great North Air Ambulance, Cancer Research and the Royal British Legion Poppy Appeal.

Several war veterans were present to show their support, including Danny Cassidy, Poppy Appeal co-ordinator for Durham and Cleveland.

He said: "It's absolutely brilliant.

The guts and determination they must have had to do something like that is out of this world.

"I know it's something they'll never forget, but it's something we'll never forget either."

Ian Rosenvigne, the airfield's owner and chief instructor, also watched along with dozens of family and friends. He said: "It was emotional for everyone.

"I'm very pleased they did it and I think they are too. They're a very nice family and I am very sorry about the tragic circumstances behind it."