The 81-year-old son of a D-Day paratrooper has jumped out of a plane to honour his father, who died during the landings 79 years ago.
Malcolm Jackson, from Shanklin, wore his dad Frederick Jackson's dog tags as he took part in a skydive above Sandown Airport on Tuesday (6).
"It was so that part of him was with me coming down. He looked after me", Malcolm told the County Press.
The late Mr Jackson, who was a Lance Corporal, was just 29 when he died.
He was killed at Pegasus Bridge - formerly known as Bénouville Bridge, near Caen.
"I've always been proud of my dad. I've been up to Bénouville many times.
"I did the jump to keep his memory, and the lads who died that day, alive. Because if it wasn't for them, what would life be like for us in this country?
"They gave their lives for us. The jump is something I've always wanted to do."
Malcolm's daughter Michelle Jackson, a local photographer, organised the skydive through the team at Skydive Isle of Wight.
Malcolm jumped with Chas McNeil.
Michelle said: "Watching it has given me a far greater understanding of just how brave my grandfather and those young guys were.
"They must have been so afraid because they didn’t just have to jump, they had to then go in to battle.
"Their actions changed how we live today."
Malcolm said he wasn't the "slightest bit fazed" by the jump and in the run up to it, he was more concerned about losing his hearing aids.
He said: "At the last moment the man said I'll take your hearing aids out!
"God willing, I'll be doing the jump again next year!"
Michelle said she plans to jump with her father next year, on the 80th anniversary.
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