Mother's brave leap in honour of hero soldier Corporal Jake Hartley

Corporal Jake Hartley died aged 20 alongside five others while serving in the Middle East on March 6, 2012.

Today would have been his 31st birthday.

On Sunday - 10 years to the day since her son was killed - Nathalie Bouzigues took part in a skydive, jumping from a plane 15,000 ft in the sky.

Nathalie, of Ossett, said she was nervous about the leap but thoughts of Jake motivated her to go through with it.

“I wanted to be free and be as close as I could be to Jake,” she said. “I wanted to erase what has previously been the worst day into something positive.”

She hopes that next year, she will be able to look back on the brave feat with some pride in what has always been a “double whammy” of a week.

“I think Jake would have been really proud,” she added.

Nathalie’s parents and colleagues travelled to Lancaster to watch her complete the skydive, which included her free falling and spinning around four times.

Jake joined the Army in 2008 and served with the Yorkshire Regiment.

When he left for the tour of Afghanistan on Valentine’s Day 2012, it was his second time serving there.

Nathalie said her son was “larger than life”, “a born leader” and “a driving force”.

Speaking to the Express last month, she said she is determined that her boy, and his courage and sacrifice, will never be forgotten.

“I think of Jake every single day,” she said. “He is everywhere. He was such a kind, loving person. He was very sincere and thought the world of his family. His memory is still very much alive. He is really missed by his friends and family.”

“As long as I’m alive, I will keep his memory alive.”