Theo P. Mandagi reaches the Sun
Theo P. Mandagi reaches the Sun
Wahyoe Boediwardhana, The Jakarta Post/Denpasar, Bali
The Mandagi family has again lost one of its skydiver sons with Wednesday's death of Theodorus Petrus Mandagi, 54, whose parachute failed to open during a victory jump marking a record free-fall formation.
A day before the ill-fated dive, Theo, as he was affectionately called, spoke to The Jakarta Post on the sidelines of final preparations for the mass free-fall formation over Ngurah Rai International Airport.
He spoke of his "soaring love for skydiving" and excitement over a chance to break a world parachuting record, as well as his other loves -- his wife and daughters.
The Mandagi name is synonymous with professional skydiving -- nationally and internationally -- but the family has paid dearly for its passion.
In 1986, Theo's brothers Roby, Alfred and Chris were killed when their chartered Piper Navajo PA-31 crashed minutes after take-off during a training session near Tangerang, 30 kilometers southwest of Jakarta.
All 11 on board were killed in the accident, including three other Indonesian skydivers, four foreign skydivers and their pilot.
Roby was the founder and chairman of the 165 Sky Divers Club.
The incident, however, did not deter other members of the Mandagis from living out their passion for the high-risk, challenging sport, which is generally popular among former soldiers.
On Tuesday, Theo was in Denpasar to partake in the event with 102 other parachutists from around the globe, who succeeded in the free-fall dive from 18,000 feet in a six-bladed propeller formation.
Looking weary, the father of Pingkan and Petra had just finished his fifth sortie and was stowing his equipment, when he said he had long wanted to be part of the core skydiving team led by top world diving instructor B.J. Worth of the U.S. In particular, he wanted to present a memorable gift to mark Indonesia's 59th Independence Day.
During a break at their operation base at the airport, Mandagi invited the Post to share a lunch of nasi pecel -- rice with boiled vegetables and spicy peanut sauce -- as he told of how skydiving had brought together him and his wife, Sri Tjiptowati Sugiandono, 52.
"My wife is the first civilian woman who took part in a free fall in Indonesia. It was then 1971, and she was a member of the students' regiment at Trisakti University," Theo reminisced. He began practicing the sport seriously a year later.
His daughters, Pingkan, 29, and Petra, 26, also fell in love with aerosports, as Theo had introduced it to them at an early age and took them along to watch their parents on practice dives.
"Pingkan started skydiving during senior high school," Theo said proudly.
Before taking off for the sixth sortie, Theo mentioned he had to replace his 1985 U.S.-made parachute with a new one.
"It's a must to renew our parachutes after eight years or 3,000 jumps," he said, but did not say why he had not yet replaced the old chute.
Some people might still remember when Mandagi bid a final farewell to Roby, Alfred and Chris: "What you have been doing, my sons, has only made me proud of you. You all chose parachute jumping as your favorite sport. God has decided the best for all of us and took your lives."
He would probably also convey the same farewell for Theo, another Icarus who reached for the Sun.
Rest in peace, Pak Theo.