Free falling: Local group meets to sky dive, some for the first time, others into the thousands

On a Saturday with nothing but blue skies, members of the Southeast Missouri Skydiving Club gathered in a hangar at the airport in Cairo, Illinois, to celebrate Don Dorris' 80th birthday. Dorris, a longtime sky diving instructor for the club, even made a jump from about 10,000 feet to commemorate the day, which he spent with some of his close friends.

Pat Lema makes his final approach back to the taxiway at Cairo, Illinois, airport.

One jumper will make his first dive today, while some veterans to the club stopped counting after their 2,000th dive.

Parachutes cover the carpeted floor of the hangar as jumpers fold and wind their colorful gear into backpacks for another jump. Most of the jumpers go into a deep focus as they pack their bags, because there is no room for error in this sport. Step by step, they fit an enormous canopy into a small bag that rests on their back.

Divers pile into the jump plane five at a time to get their chance at some free fall. As the plane takes off, the divers power up the cameras mounted to their helmets and occasionally look at their wrist-mounted altimeters. Most jumps take place between 4,000 and 10,000 feet in the air.

Once they reach altitude and the plane is positioned over the drop zone, the jumper in the front of the aircraft reaches over to open the door. A rush of air fills the cockpit as the door flies open.

A caution sign hangs in the window of the SEMO Skydiving plane. (Glenn Landberg)

Don Dorris, an instructor with SEMO Skydiving, prepares for take off. (Glenn Landberg)

While holding a support, the first jumper steps out onto a small platform attached to the landing gear. The only thing left to do is jump.

As the divers free fall to earth, they quickly become tiny dots on the horizon, almost disappearing from view, until their neon parachutes seem to explode into place above them. The five jumpers meander through the sky for the next few minutes. They touch down just a few hundred feet from where they took off less than half an hour before.