Honoring Felix Baumgartner

I Was There Standing on Top of the World The Mag: How Felix Baumgartner survived

Felix Baumgartner, in 2012, became the first human to break the sound barrier with only his body, reaching 843.6 mph in his pressurized suit during a 9-mile descent from a capsule hoisted more than 24 miles above the Earth by a helium balloon. FILE/Jay Nemeth/Red Bull Content Pool

MILAN — Extreme athlete Felix Baumgartner, the first skydiver to fall faster than the speed of sound during a 24-mile leap through the stratosphere more than a decade ago, died in a crash Thursday along the eastern coast of Italy, according to an official. He was 56. Italian firefighters who responded said a paraglider crashed into the side of a swimming pool in the city of Porto Sant’Elpidio.

Baumgartner, known as “Fearless Felix,” stunned the world in 2012 when he became the first human to break the sound barrier with only his body. He wore a pressurized suit and jumped from a capsule hoisted more than 24 miles (39 kilometers) above Earth by a giant helium balloon over New Mexico. The Austrian, who was part of the Red Bull Stratos team, topped out at 843.6 mph — the equivalent of 1.25 times the speed of sound — during a nine-minute descent.

“When I was standing there on top of the world, you become so humble, you do not think about breaking records anymore, you do not think about gaining scientific data. The only thing you want is to come back alive,” he said after landing in the eastern New Mexico desert. The altitude he jumped from also marked the highest ever for a skydiver, shattering the previous record set in 1960 by Joe Kittinger, who served as an adviser to Baumgartner during his feat.

Baumgartner’s altitude record stood for two years until Google executive Alan Eustace set new marks for the highest free-fall jump and greatest free-fall distance. In 2012, millions watched YouTube’s live stream as Baumgartner coolly flashed a thumbs-up when he came out of the capsule high above Earth and then activated his parachute as he neared the ground, lifting his arms in victory after he landed.

Baumgartner, a former Austrian military parachutist, made thousands of jumps from planes, bridges, skyscrapers and famed landmarks around the world, including the Christ the Redeemer statue in Brazil. In 2003, he flew across the English Channel in a carbon fiber wing after being dropped from a plane.

In recent years, he performed with The Flying Bulls as a helicopter stunt pilot in shows across Europe. Baumgartner said after his record-breaking jump in 2012 that traveling faster than sound is “hard to describe because you don’t feel it.”

“Sometimes we have to get really high to see how small we are,” he said.

Felix Baumgartner glides through the air past the Dois Irmãos peaks in Rio de Janeiro in 2001. – Reuters Story by Mitchell McCluskey and Sharon Braithwaite, CNN

Skydiver Felix Baumgartner – Search Videos

Felix Baumgartner, an Austrian base jumper and skydiver renowned for his record-breaking jump from the stratosphere, died while paragliding in Italy on Thursday, local media reported. Baumgartner, 56, lost control of his paraglider and crashed into a hotel swimming pool in the coastal town of Porto Sant’Elpidio, CNN affiliate SkyTG24 reported. The apparatus struck a woman who was not seriously injured, according to SkyTG24.

Italy’s national broadcaster RAI reported that authorities are working to determine the exact cause of the crash.

CNN has reached out to Baumgartner’s representatives.

The mayor of Porto Sant’Elpidio, Massimiliano Ciarpella, said on his official Facebook page that his community was “deeply affected” by the death of Baumgartner, who he called a “symbol of courage.” Baumgartner, who had base jumped from landmarks like the Petronas Towers in Malaysia and the Christ the Redeemer statue in Rio de Janeiro, achieved international recognition in 2012 when he broke a world record by skydiving from a pressurized pod about 24 miles above the ground.

Red Bull, which sponsored Baumgartner’s record-breaking feat, issued a statement Thursday stating in part, “We are shocked and overwhelmed with sadness to hear the devastating news of our longtime friend Felix Baumgartner. “Felix was “born to fly” and was determined to push the limits. He was also smart, professional, thorough, and meticulous, never leaving anything to chance. He was generous, giving much of his time to help and inspiring so many people.”

A decade after his famed leap, he described to CNN how he felt at that moment.

“I’m standing there on top of the world outside of a capsule in space and in the stratosphere. I looked around and the sky above me was completely black,” Baumgartner told CNN Sport’s Patrick Snell. “I was really trying to inhale that moment,” he added. As he fell to Earth, his speed reached more than 840 mph, breaking the sound barrier.

The so-called Red Bull Stratos freefall took six years to plan as the team worked out every detail of the jump. “We thought, we’re going to build the capsule, build the pressure suit, practice for a while, and then we go all the way up to the stratosphere and come back to Earth at supersonic speed,” said Baumgartner. “Sometimes we’d go into a meeting with three problems and then leave that meeting eight hours later with another five … and no solution for the previous problems.”

To get Baumgartner up to the stratosphere, his team had to construct a helium balloon the size of 33 football pitches, weighing 3,708lbs. It took as many as 20 people to move without damaging the balloon’s material, which was 10 times thinner than a sandwich bag. But the biggest threat to the project was perhaps the most unforeseen – Baumgartner’s mental fortitude. The suit had to be both pressurized and able to handle temperatures of minus 72° Celsius (minus 97.6° Fahrenheit).

Astronaut Buzz Aldrin, pictured right, presented an award to Felix Baumgartner during Spike TV’s Guys Choice 2013. – Jason Kempin/Getty Images

“It’s very uncomfortable,” said Baumgartner. “You have a total lack of mobility. It always feels like you’re breathing through a pillow. You’re completely separated from the outside world. So once the visor is down, all you can hear is yourself breathing.” Soon after landing, Baumgartner said he struggled to process his emotions as he approached the Earth.

“I had tears in my eyes when I was coming back a couple of times because you’re sitting there and you thought about that moment so many times, you know, how it would feel and how it would look like.” “And this is way bigger than I had anticipated,” he said.

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Richard Cranium comment

Serious bummer, dude. I actually looked him up on Wiki a couple weeks ago after seeing the film of his progenitor (who planned the Red Bull jump) do the same skydive from a lower altitude back in the sixties. It was the video from Boards of Canada – Dayvan Cowboy I’ve always admired people who push the limits like Felix did…but always mourn their passing when they sometimes find them. RIP.

Charles Pitman comment

As people say he died while doing something he loved, think about the rescuers who had to deal with the aftermath. As a long time SAR team member, I have been in the unfortunate position of having to call the loved ones of people who have died doing something like this (and other sports). Believe me, it can take a toll on us. If you have never had to place someone in a body bag, or call relatives, or deal with witnesses, or assist law enforcement in a scene analysis, believe me, you don’t want to do any of that. Such things become far more than simply “the guy died while doing something he loved.”

john fox comment

I can/ Of old age. I do what I enjoy, but I don’t do things that will kill me. Yes, it will happen anyway, but he will not see what happens to his family for the next 20 years. To do things like this, is to take a risk that is not called for. I hike. I play sports. I treasure hunting. I take risks. But this was beyond boundaries. So, while people can say ““We are shocked and overwhelmed with sadness “I say you can be overwhelmed, but not shocked.

Steve King comment

Felix Baumgartner’s 127,852 ft / 843 mph freefall from space, CAUSED A SONIC BOOM BY BREAKING THE SOUND BARRIER.

ONE OF LIFE’S STRANGE THINGS, LIKE SKYDIVERS DYING IN A PLANE CRASH, SURVIVING A FALL FROM SPACE TO DIE IN A POOL

I just came from the Air and Space Museum that holds the pod in Numbers he jumped out of for his record-breaking jump. Crazy

Record breaking space jump – free fall faster than speed of sound – Red Bull Stratos.

Felix Baumgartner Space Jump World Record 2012 Full HD 1080p [FULL] – YouTube

Felix Baumgartner’s Supersonic Freefall | Red Bull Stratos | BBC Earth Science

Felix Baumgartner’s supersonic freefall from 128k’ – Mission Highlights

Felix Baumgartner’s sonic boom captured from the ground – YouTube

Red Bull Stratos FULL POV | Felix Baumgartner’s Stratosphere Jump

Bring me back, God – Powerful Worship Song (Official Lyric Video)

Felix Baumgartner’s Incredible Freefall | BBC Earth | BBC Studios