A TEAM of 22 bus drivers and their office colleagues from First York took part in a mammoth skydive to raise money for the Yorkshire Air Ambulance (YAA).

The group leapt into the skies over the North Yorkshire coast after taking off from East Leys Farm in Grindale, near Bridlington.

Their aerial antics were delayed from last year due to bad weather and have taken months to re-arrange due the size of the group.

The jump was organised by members of the Yorkshire Rider Sports and Social Club who are all employees of the bus operator.

Tony Richmond, one of the York drivers, said: “I was chatting with the club committee and we agreed to organise an annual ‘adrenaline event’ each year. None of the club members had done a parachute jump before, so we decided that would be a good activity to start with and set about finding a skydiving club.”

The team is well on their way to reaching a target £4,000 for YAA with more than £3,600 pledged so far.

“We chose the Yorkshire Air Ambulance due to the fantastic work they do. The helicopter alone costs a staggering £12,000 a day to run,” said Tony.

They jumped from a height of 10,000 feet with instructors from Skydive GB Parachute Club in Bridlington, free-falling at 120mph in a descent estimated to last 10 minutes.

Tony said: “It’s taken quite a lot of arranging but everyone enjoyed the experience. When we were all safely back on the ground there were smiles all round and people were just elated. Hopefully, we’ll be able to give even more to support this amazing emergency service.”