An 83-year-old man banned from skydiving by doctors has been given permission to jump out of a plane after being told he has just weeks to live.
Denis Mellor has dreamed of flying through the air since he served as an RAF driver and mechanic during his National Service in the 1950s.
Last year, he asked doctors if he could skydive to raise funds for Montrose Day Care, but was told his daily medication – which includes the blood-thinning drug warfarin – stopped him from doing so.
Mr Mellor has since been told that a lump on his eye was cancerous and has spread through his body.
The pensioner’s consultant has
since taken him off several medications,
including warfarin.
Mr Mellor said: “When I went to my own doctor, he told me what was stopping and I said ‘right, can you fill in this form for me to do this skydive?’.”
Mr Mellor is originally from the Wirral on Merseyside but was stationed at Inverbervie in Aberdeenshire in 1953 and moved to Brechin
in 1988.
He went into sheltered housing in Montrose in 2012 and now visits the day centre three times a week.
He said: “Time is running out for me.
“I want to give back to them for what they’ve given me. The management and staff are excellent.
“I’ve had some personal problems and they have stood by me, helped
and supported me.”
With the help of his granddaughter,
Michelle Quinn, Mr Mellor will take to the
skies above Errol Airfield in Perthshire on August 17.