You've heard the expression "taking the leap" to describe getting married.

But Staff Sergeant Dan Cook, of Loveland, Colo., took it to a whole new level as he parachuted out of a plane Saturday at the Chicago Air and Water Show, making a grand entrance to surprise girlfriend, Leah Angott, by asking for her hand in marriage upon arrival.

"It ended up being perfect because that's where we had our first date spot," Cook, 28, told GoodMorningAmerica.com.

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Cook decided to celebrate his last jump with the All Veteran Parachute Team before heading off to U.S. Navy flight school on Dec. 8 by marking the occasion with a truly huge memory.

"I've been working on this for about three months, trying to figure out how I wanted to do it," he said. "And the timing was great, once I got the official acceptance letter to flight school, and Chicago is one of my favorite locations."

The parachutist has completed about 3,000 jumps over the past eight years, and Angott, his now fiancée, had no idea what was in store for her once he landed on this last one.

"Shocked is definitely the right word," Angott, 23, said. "I couldn't think straight. My heart was pounding."

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Such a high-flying stunt begs the question of whether the ring was safe, but Cook says he had it all under control.

"I jumped with it in my pocket," Cook added. "I had it locked up tight. I have a zipper pocket on my jumpsuit."

The happy couple plans to have a small, intimate ceremony in Pennsylvania's Cook Forest on Sept. 7, before Cook reports to the Navy in December.