mofo554 0 #1 July 31, 2003 Felix Baumgartner "flew" across the English Channel early this morning... from msn.com: http://www.msnbc.com/news/946434.asp?vts=073120030915 LONDON, July 31 — A skydiver known as “The Missile Man” on Thursday became the first person to cross the English Channel in an unpowered flight, free falling at up to 230 mph in the process. Wearing high-tech carbon wings, Felix Baumgartner jumped out of a plane at 30,000 feet above Dover, England, and flew to France, parachuting into hills above the port of Calais. “IT’S PRETTY cold up there. I still can feel nothing,” the self-styled “God of the Skies” told reporters after a hard landing. Baumgartner told reporters that he had a close call as soon as he jumped out of the plane. “I went directly into the opening with my legs,” he said, “so I had to cut my glider in pieces because it was hanging up on the lines, but I made it and that’s great.” Setting off early to avoid commercial flights, Baumgartner used oxygen supplies during the 18-mile flight to survive the rarefied air that was as cold as 31 degrees below Fahrenheit. His team estimates that he attained a top speed of 230 mph during the fall, which took around 10 minutes. In contrast, Louis Bleriot took 37 minutes to make his ground-breaking flight across the channel in 1909 and Matthew Webb took 22 hours to swim it for the first time in 1875. Baumgartner’s wings, with a span of nearly 6 feet, are made of the same special lightweight carbon composite used in Formula One race cars. Baumgartner tested it by speeding around the tarmac of Salzburg Airport on the roof of a high-powered Porsche. He has also trained with the German air force. Baumgartner, 34, set world records for the highest and lowest parachute dives in 1999 with daredevil jumps from the Petronas Towers in Kuala Lumpur and the statue of Christ in Rio de Janeiro. The Austrian started parachuting as a teenager before taking up the extreme sport of BASE jumping. BASE stands for Buildings, Antenna, Spans (Bridges) and the Earth (cliffs). Members of the club must jump from each of those before being allowed in. One bookmaker had quoted odds of 3/20 for a successful jump and 7/2 against. Baumgartner, who was equipped with cameras and high-tech tracking gear, said he had to follow his two planes over part of the channel when cloud cover blocked his view. The flight was stressful but well worth it, he added. “I flew into my own shadow, which the morning sun exposed on a cloud together with a rainbow,” he said. “I don’t think anyone has experienced that before.” Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
CrazyIvan 0 #2 July 31, 2003 Sweet!!!__________________________________________ Blue Skies and May the Force be with you. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
usmcdannyboy 0 #3 July 31, 2003 well i have experienced flying through my own shadow with a rainbow under me but then again in hawaii clouds and rainbows are not uncommon here. actually any time your above the clouds with the sun shining you should see a rainbow ( its actualy a ring when viewed from above.) ooohhh and watch out he's a "god of the sky" oh one more thing theres this ancient proverb that might apply to this guy..."man with hole in pocket...feels cocky all day" gotta say great job though. i wouldnt mind giving it a go somedayI am the light my son...What you seek is fire Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
VisionAir 0 #4 August 1, 2003 http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/3112095.stm Has video of the jump looks like fun Huh?!? What cloud?!? Oh that!!! That's just Industrial Haze Alex M. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
pilotdave 0 #5 August 1, 2003 A few videos of the jump (from the news) are available at skydivingmovies.com in the /from_TV/ folder. 2 BBC reports and one from ITV. They're the ones that begin with Felix... Dave Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
cpoxon 0 #6 October 17, 2003 QuoteA few videos of the jump (from the news) are available at skydivingmovies.com in the /from_TV/ folder. 2 BBC reports and one from ITV. I've finally got around to uploading the segment about Felix "crossing the Channel" for the third programme in the Extremists series, that recently aired on Channel 4 in the UK (basically a shameless plug for Red Bull). This is at least a couple of months since it supposedly took place, therefore allowing them at lot more time, than the initial news reports, to include actual footage from the jump but there are still a lot of inconsistencies that have me wondering... Anyway, the video is up on skydivingmovies.com (21 MB requires Media Player)Skydiving Fatalities - Cease not to learn 'til thou cease to live Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
