RENOWNED skydiver Michael Vaughan posted a picture of fellow parachutist student Briony ‘Alana’ Clarke just 24 hours before she was tragically killed in a jump the pair made over Bryon Bay yesterday.

Vaughan remains in a critical condition in hospital after undergoing multiple emergency surgeries to treat injuries sustained in a fall.

The 40-year-old was clinging to life after he collided mid-air with Briony near Byron Bay yesterday afternoon.

media_camera Briony ‘Alana’ Clarke (in blue jump suit) pictured just a day before her fall.

media_camera Alana Clarke. Picture: Facebook

The 29-year-old died after the pair became entwined and plummeted to the ground.

Ms Clarke, known to most people in the skydiving fraternity as Alana, helped organise the course being held this week at Tyagarah to help teach skydivers the finer details of what is known as “canopy flying”.

Described by the Australian Parachute Federation as a “highly experienced” skydiver, the 29-year-old was also well-known in the Byron Bay community through her company, Byron Bay Babysitting, whichshe established last year.

Mr Vaughan had survived “multiple simultaneous surgeries” overnight and was now in intensive care.

“He has many internal injuries that are in themselves life-threatening from the trauma of the impact,” friends posted on social media today.

media_camera Vaughan is a leading canopy pilot. Picture: Facebook media_camera Support has poured in for Michael Vaughan. Picture: Facebook

“They are now putting a cooling blanket on him. This is their last method of treatment.”

“We now pray he can last each minute and each hour such that they can do scans ... to see if there has been any improvement.”

Mr Vaughan’s father and aunt have rushed to his bedside to be with him.

The Australian Parachute Federation posted a message saying that Mr Vaughan’s family was grateful for the support and prayers from the skydiving fraternity.

media_camera Distraught ... people console each other after the accident at Tyagarah near Byron Bay. Picture: Jason O'Brien

People from as far afield as Chile and the UK posted messages of support overnight as news of the accident spread through social media and online.

“Hey Vaughnie, hang in there and keep fighting! Best wishes and thoughts from the UK,” fellow skydiver Martin Robiette wrote.

Parachuting students had been on a week-long course taking off from Tyagarah airstrip — often used by experienced skydivers and a skydiving company taking tourists for parachute drops.

The “canopy course” was hosted by Mr Vaughan, who has starred in TV advertisements and has made more than 10,000 jumps.

Mr Vaughan is considered one of Australia’s best “canopy pilots”.

Michael Vaughan

Online details showed yesterday was to be a “flying” course in which participants learnt manoeuvres such as in-flight stalls and high-performance landings.

Australian Parachute Foundation safety and training manager Richard McCooey said an APF investigator was en route to the site but some details about the accident were already known.

“A group of people jumped. Two of those people’s parachutes opened normally but close to each other and they collided after their parachutes opened,” he said.

media_camera Police attend the scene following the accident. Picture: Jason O'Brien

“Their parachutes collided, and then what tends to happen is their parachutes become tangled,” Mr McCooey said.

“I’m really speculating ­because it’s probably weeks away from knowing exactly what has happened but you may end up with each one only having half the air in it.

“That upsets the normal descent rate of the parachute and they descend faster than they are meant to ... they have impacted the ground very hard.”

Mr McCooey said it was an “unusual” accident, although similar incidents had occurred previously in Australia. Both people involved in the crash were equipped with reserve parachutes, but neither was deployed.

“If you collide with someone and you may or may not have been injured in that collision, you may not be able to use that reserve,” Mr McCooey said.

An average of two people a year are killed in Australia in skydiving and parachuting activities.

Mr McCooey said that figure should be taken in the context of hundreds of thousands of jumps occurring annually nationwide.

Civil Aviation Safety Authority spokesman Peter Gibson said the Australian Parachute Foundation would be responsible for investigating the tragedy, with a report to be handed to CASA for review.

“They take carriage of it but we certainly review it all and make any decisions about whether any actions are needed,” he said.

CASA and the APF both have the power to recommend industry-wide changes, either to skydiving and parachuting safety and general procedures.