Love is in the air

DOWN on one knee: Daniel pops the question in traditional fashion shortly after the skydive.

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LOVE was certainly in the air for one novice skydiver who accepted a mid-air proposal on her first ever free-fall.

Nicola Burgess (30) thought she was doing a fundraising 13,000ft sky dive with partner Daniel Dixon (32) to raise money for the Starlight Foundation.

But once she leapt from the plane, her experienced skydiver boyfriend held up specially-made gloves which read ‘Marry Me’. In case she closed her eyes on the way down, her thoughtful fiancé had a banner with the proposal waiting for her on the ground at the jump site in Sibson, Cambridgeshire.

Despite the terrifying drop, the overcome nursery manager happily said “I do” to Daniel — albeit in the form of a mid-air thumbs-up.

Mr Dixon, a gardener from Grasscroft, said: “I’ve been planning this for a while and just wanted to do something different.

“We can do the whole romantic champagne meal afterwards. In the air she suddenly took a second look at the gloves and I just saw her face change in an instant.

“By the time she reached the ground she had been crying and I was waiting for her with the ring and on one knee.

“I knew what the answer would be, we’ve been talking about it for a while.”

The couple met 12 years ago when Nicola used to babysit Daniel’s nephews. The pair have been a couple ever since. But the happy duo don’t have any plans set in stone for their wedding just yet.

His fiancée said: “During the jump he was putting his hands up, but I just kept hitting them thinking he was high-fiving me. Then I realised! As I got to the ground I was so overwhelmed.

“I forgot to lift my feet up and fell flat on my face on landing, it wasn’t graceful at all.

“It was hugely unexpected, but a fantastic surprise and I’ve got a gorgeous ring — though I would have said yes if he’d give me a Haribo ring!

“I could never have imagined him doing it in a normal way, but this rendered me speechless.

“I said I wouldn’t do it for under a grand, so I also raised £1,200 for charity which is just fantastic.”

Nicola has now vowed to do a second jump to take in the experience without life-changing distractions.

She says that the wedding will all be down to her though – no more surprises.