For local resident, Justin Silva, skydiving is a sport that spans three generations of his family, 66 years and more than 30,000 jumps.

Mr. Silva’s journey started when he made his first jump back in 1984. He now owns Chattanooga Skydiving Company and has more than 14,500 skydives under his belt.

Mr. Silva comes from a skydiving family. His father, Vin Silva, made his first jump back in 1960 and completed 350 jumps. Justin’s son, Joe, made his first jump in 2004 at 18, and now has more than 15,500 jumps under his belt and owns Skydive Pepperell just outside of Boston.

Justin and Joe’s drop zones will be fully operational participants in the third annual World Skydiving Day on July 11, where skydivers from around the world will attempt to break the world record for skydives in a single day, which was set in 2024 with 30,351 jumps across 51 countries.