A daredevil Aberfeldy pensioner has survived her first skydive at the age of 80 – and raised £1,800 for the Scottish Air Ambulance into the bargain.
Irene Cattanach completed the challenge at Errol Airfield, despite being terrified of heights.
She said the terror she endured was nothing compared to the agonies people go through while they’re waiting for medical help in an emergency.
And she’s already planning her next fundraiser – a charity wing walk next year.
Irene, who’s a grandmother of six and a great-grandmother of two, is not easily fazed.
She faced down boa constrictors and tarantulas on the Bear Grylls reality TV show Treasure Island.
And she welcomed TV cameras into their home when Billy Connolly visited her late husband Euan’s back garden banjo-making workshop.
She originally set out to make £600 for Scotland’s Charity Air Ambulance.
But her GoFundMe page is currently sitting at £1,855 and she’s still accepting donations.
‘My 45 minutes of fear was nothing’
Irene said she was glad the tandem skydive at Errol Airfield was over.
“It was a great laugh but never again,” she said.
“You just shuffle out of this tiny plane into a huge void a mile and a half up. And then it must be what being in a tumble dryer feels like.
“It was awful.”
She won’t be putting her feet up any time soon though.
She’s already booked her place on a charity wing walk in Aberdeenshire next year.
Irene said she was glad to have done her bit for Scotland’s Charity Air Ambulance.
“My 45 minutes of fear were nothing compared to what people suffer when they’re waiting for help to arrive,” she said.
“The air ambulance didn’t save Euan. We had the road ambulance but it was all too late for him.
“I know what I suffered from the grief though, and I just want to do something to protect other people from that.”
From Bear to the Big Yin
Irene became an unlikely celebrity at the tender age of 75 when she became the oldest contestant to appear on Treasure Island.
The Channel 4 show, hosted by adventurer Bear Grylls, pitched 12 hopefuls into a battle for survival on a South American desert island.
Irene landed with a backpack, a machete, a knife, a fishing line, two hooks and a torch.
She endured five weeks before returning home to Aberfeldy.
She later told The Courier: “It was a living hell, but I have no regrets about taking part.”
Irene and Euan also welcomed Billy Connolly to their home during filming for his two-part documentary, Made in Scotland.
Euan was a self-taught banjo-maker and the Big Yin went away with one of his instruments after the visit.
Scotland’s Charity Air Ambulance is based at Perth Airport.
It has dealt with 5,358 callouts since it launched in 2013. And it relies on donations to continue its life-saving work.
Conversation