Freefalling 90-year-old fundraises for hospital

John Landau is no stranger to heights owing to his time as an airborne gunner

A 90-year-old retired airborne gunner has helped fund new hospital equipment by doing a freefall parachute jump.

John Landau, from Cheltenham, jumped from an aircraft above an old airfield in Devon last week, raising almost £5,000 for three charities.

The Cheltenham and Gloucester Hospitals Trust was one of those charities, funding four new CT scanners with help from Mr Landau's £2,000 donation.

Mr Landau also raised money for the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) and his local regimental charity.

Mr Landau is no stranger to falling from a plane. The retired artilleryman estimates he has completed more than 100 such jumps in his lifetime.

He was commissioned a month after the late Queen's Coronation in 1953, having lined the route.

Mr Landau held the rank of lieutenant colonel when he left in 1978.

"With the British army I did about 80 or 90 jumps, but I've done some with other armies and some civilian jumps," he said.

Mr Landau said he felt "a great sense of achievement" following his fundraising efforts

"I was challenged to do a fundraising jump for my 80th, and somebody said to me at the time, 'I bet you won't do it when you're 90'.

"I bravely said, 'Yes, of course I will', never thinking I'd live this long."

Mr Landau jumped with his eldest grandson, William Grant, and received "a lot of family support" from his wife, Helen, their daughters and their husbands, and their grandchildren.

"It was fine," he said of the jump.

"I know it sounds blasé but I've done it so many times that my pulse rate doesn't particularly go up.

"At one point, as I left the aircraft, I thought, 'I'm 90, why am I doing this?'."

With regards to his fundraising efforts, Mr Landau said he felt "a great sense of achievement", but couldn't take the credit.

"It's down to the generosity of my friends and family," he said.

Richard Smith from Cheltenham and Gloucester Hospitals Charity said Mr Landau's feat was an "incredible challenge"

"I've got family all over the world and they all chipped in."

Richard Smith, associate director at Cheltenham and Gloucester Hospitals Charity, said the charity was "totally in awe of what John has done".

"Thanks to fantastic supporters like John doing amazing things, we've raised over £3m, which has funded four CT scanners today."

And it looks like Mr Landau could make his generosity last until his 100th birthday, telling the BBC he'd "certainly consider" jumping out of a plane in 10 years "if he lives that long".

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