Those wacky wedding wingwalkers

Gloucestershire -- August 25, 2008 – After proposing marriage to Katie Hodgson in the Brazilian rain forest, Darren McWalters was looking for some way to make the marriage ceremony just as memorable. He found it with a little suggestion from his bride-to-be. On August 5, McWalters, 24, stood on the top wing of a Boeing Stearman biplane while 23-year-old Hodgson, dressed in full bridal gown, flew along side on the wing of an identical aircraft, according to the Daily Mail. The Rev. George Bringham flew ahead of the couple on the wings of a third aircraft, bringing the Lancashire couple together in holy matrimony over an airborne communications system. The ceremony was played through loud speakers throughout RFC Rendcomb Airfield, near Cirencester, Gloucestershire, to the congregation waiting on the ground below. Jets of white smoke fired from the back of the airplane as the couple exchanged their vows about 1,000-feet in the air. However, heavy winds and rain cut the flight short and the couple was rushed inside where they exchanged rings. McWalters, a fitness instructor, said, “We got engaged in the Brazilian rain forest and I wanted a wedding blessing that would top my proposal.” So did it top it? “It was unbelievable,” he told the Daily Mail. “Looking down and seeing my family and friends below was just incredible. I'm lost for words.” The Rev. Bringham, 67, said he was not scared in the slightest by the experience. “It’s certainly the most unusual wedding I’ve ever done.” Formation wingwalkers Team Guinot flew the couple for the ceremony. The high-flying wedding was played live on Sky News throughout the day, and pictures of their unusual wedding appeared in The Times, The Guardian, The Sun, Daily Mirror, Daily Star, the Metro and the Daily Express. In addition, the two were interviewed live on NBC Today via a live satellite link the following day.

Darren and Katie McWalters, 24 and 23, were married while wingwalking. Their wedding vows were played through loud speakers to the congregation waiting below. The Rev. George Brigham conducts the marriage ceremony over Gloucestershire. Darren and Katie McWalters pose for a picture after the ceremony.

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