Air Force Squadron Halts Rappelling After Fatal Fall

Tech. Sgt. Ian Patterson fell from the stadium rafters at San Antonio's Alamodome during a pregame demonstration before the UTSA-Navy football game on Oct. 17. The 15-year veteran and Tactical Air Control Party instructor was taken to a hospital, where he later died from injuries sustained in the fall. The Air Force's 6th Combat Training Squadron suspended all rappelling and rope-training activities and demonstrations until further notice after Patterson's death. Patterson was named Air Force Special Warfare Enlisted Instructor of the Year in 2022. The circumstances of the fall remain under investigation. The Air Force has not said when the pause will end. It also has not said whether the suspension of rappelling and rope-training applies only to Patterson's squadron or extends more widely.