Air Force Officer Falls During Rappel at UTSA-Navy Game

A member of the 6th Combat Training Squadron's Detachment 2 fell from the Alamodome rafters during a pregame rappel demonstration before UTSA's home football game against Navy on Saturday evening, October 18, 2026. The officer was one of four service members performing the demonstration as part of the university's annual Salute to Armed Forces and Veterans event. According to witnesses and game commentators, approximately halfway through the descent the officer began sliding in an uncontrolled manner before striking the ground. San Antonio Fire Department personnel transported the injured officer as priority one to an area hospital; the officer's condition remained unknown as of initial reporting.

The 6th Combat Training Squadron is an Air Force unit based at Chapman Training Annex on Joint Base San Antonio-Lackland and at Camp Bullis, an Army training facility in northern Bexar County. As part of their mission training tactical air controllers to embed with Army and Marine units, squadron personnel regularly practice fast-roping from structures 15 to 30 feet high and rappelling from helicopters hovering 100 feet or more. The incident occurred just before 7 p.m., prompting UTSA staff to form a protective perimeter around the officer as medical personnel provided aid. The officer was loaded onto a stretcher and transported through the Alamodome tunnel, causing approximately a 10-minute delay to the start of the game.

Witnesses described the moment as sudden and alarming. "Once the band started playing, there was a guy that fell down and started coming down fast," witness Adrian Corey told local news. Another witness, Siomara Corey, noted that the stadium fell silent: "Everybody was quiet, the band stopped performing, everybody was dead silent." She added, "It was a very sad moment and we don't know his condition. There was no updates after that other than asking for prayers, but it did not look good."