UK All-woman Record 50 Way

An all-woman team has broken a UK record by performing a 50-strong formation skydive in Nottinghamshire. The event was led by skydiver Lesley Gale and took nine months to organise. The team, who jumped from three planes above Langar, was attempting to break the women's UK skydive formation record. On Saturday, the team had four attempts at the record without success but on Sunday, landed in the record books with its first attempt.

'Incredible scenes'

Ms Gale said organising the event had been a challenge.

She told the BBC's East Midlands Today programme: "We needed three aircraft for the record so they needed to be brought in specially.

Then there is all the pilots involved in doing very close formation flying and we needed to get the right people for that.

"Just getting the list together was incredible."

However she described the feeling when the team finally reached the ground as "rare".

"The scenes when we landed were incredible," she said.

"There was hugging, kissing. We were all just in a mad heap of canopies and rigs - everyone just went ballistic.

"The whole drop zone went ballistic, they had all seen it from the ground.

"It was an incredible moment. One of those moments that is very rare in your life and then when it happens, is just fantastic."

Skydiving is still a male dominated sport but it is hoped the team's achievement will encourage more women to take to the skies.

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