Skydiving Trainer Killed After Plummeting Without Safety Gear in Music City

Federal aviation authorities is investigating the death of a skydiving instructor after he became separated from his client during a jump in Nashville, Tennessee.

Police say trainer Justin Fuller "is presumed to have fallen from the sky without a safety chute" during the dive on the weekend.

Fuller, 35 years old, appeared to have detached from his client and a dual harness, which links the pair during a dive and contains the parachute.

A police helicopter located the instructor's remains in a forested zone some time after. Local emergency crews used several ladders to access the middle-aged student who survived the fall after being stuck on a tree for some time with the emergency parachute.

Police said three other dives, which occurred near Nashville's John C Tune airport, were carried out without incident prior to the fatal fall. The plane from which they leaped also landed safely.

It is unclear how the instructor, an seasoned parachutist, became separated from the protective gear.

A man who helped rescue teams in the operation told a local television station the student who officials rescued said "he was a first-time jumper, and it was going to be his final one".

Mr Fuller had previously posted about his enthusiasm for teaching others how to skydive.

"Teaching people to skydive has consistently been in my view the most rewarding job at the drop zone," Mr Fuller wrote in an Instagram post in June.

"Observing students learn the skills and begin maneuvering their bodies is always a touching experience. Occasionally though, it can become quite chaotic up there when you release a student for their initial attempt."

During that period he shared photos of the wreckage a jump aircraft he was on noting the aircraft's motor had failed after departure. All 20 people aboard survived.