Narrative:

Skydiving operation: during a tandem jump from 10;000 feet over the airport a seatbelt got caught on the tandem instructor's ankle/leg upon departure. The student and instructor were hanging underneath the aircraft and I could only see the tandem instructor's legs. Flight remained stable but I was unresponsive to ATC during the event and only made one call to say 'hold on; hold on; hold on'. I was reaching out the door trying to unhook the belt as the instructor was also reaching for it. The instructor was able to unclasp the belt. I reported the incident to ATC and to the airport as they had an ambulance on standby for an annual fly-in. Their parachute deployed and I could not tell if they were going to be able to land at the airport. I remained in the air and reported their location to ATC. I asked ATC to call fire and rescue as I wasn't sure of the condition of either parties involved. They landed their parachute about 1/2 mile south of the airport on a golf course and from the air I could see them both walk to the clubhouse. Once I landed the plane a car arrived with the student and instructor. They were both unharmed and had already spoken to the ambulance who had called off fire and rescue.I did not see the instructor get caught on the seatbelt or I would've stopped him from exiting. I believe a seatbelt was left clasped and improperly stowed away. While the student and instructor slid towards the door in preparation for the jump the instructor's foot unwittingly slid into the seatbelt. I believe it is essential that we check all seatbelts preflight even those that will not be used. Had we done this; this whole incident could've been avoided. There were no injuries during this incident but the situation could've been much worse. I will always check all seatbelts on board to ensure that there is no snag hazard for skydivers.

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Original NASA ASRS Text

Title: C182 jump plane pilot and the sky diving instructor involved reported the instructor's leg became entangled in a seat belt while exiting the aircraft. The instructor; with tandem student attached; was able to release the seat belt buckle and fall free.

Narrative: Skydiving Operation: During a tandem jump from 10;000 feet over the airport a seatbelt got caught on the tandem instructor's ankle/leg upon departure. The student and instructor were hanging underneath the aircraft and I could only see the tandem instructor's legs. Flight remained stable but I was unresponsive to ATC during the event and only made one call to say 'Hold on; hold on; hold on'. I was reaching out the door trying to unhook the belt as the instructor was also reaching for it. The instructor was able to unclasp the belt. I reported the incident to ATC and to the airport as they had an ambulance on standby for an annual fly-in. Their parachute deployed and I could not tell if they were going to be able to land at the airport. I remained in the air and reported their location to ATC. I asked ATC to call Fire and Rescue as I wasn't sure of the condition of either parties involved. They landed their parachute about 1/2 mile south of the airport on a golf course and from the air I could see them both walk to the clubhouse. Once I landed the plane a car arrived with the student and instructor. They were both unharmed and had already spoken to the ambulance who had called off fire and rescue.I did not see the instructor get caught on the seatbelt or I would've stopped him from exiting. I believe a seatbelt was left clasped and improperly stowed away. While the student and instructor slid towards the door in preparation for the jump the instructor's foot unwittingly slid into the seatbelt. I believe it is essential that we check all seatbelts preflight even those that will not be used. Had we done this; this whole incident could've been avoided. There were no injuries during this incident but the situation could've been much worse. I will always check all seatbelts on board to ensure that there is no snag hazard for skydivers.

Data retrieved from NASA's ASRS site and automatically converted to unabbreviated mixed upper/lowercase text. This report is for informational purposes with no guarantee of accuracy. See NASA's ASRS site for official report.