Wingsuit Flying
Wingsuit Flying, also called wingsuiting, is a variation of skydiving. In this sport, a person will fly in the air using a special jumpsuit called a wingsuit. This wingsuit comprises of two arm wings and a single leg wing which has inflatable pressurized nylon cells.
The modern wingsuits were developed in the 1990’s. They are sometimes referred to as birdman suits or flying squirrel suits. In wingsuiting, the wingsuiter uses his or her body to control their direction, speed, and lift. A wingsuiter may jump from a plane or a mountain. Usually, at the end of wingsuiting, a parachute is used to safely land. The wingsuiter uses a parachute designed for skydiving or BASE-jumping.
wingsuit flyerThe fastest wingsuit flight record is held by pilot Shin Ito, with 363 km/h. Jhonathan Florez, a Colombian skydiver, set the record for the longest and highest time in windsuiting. It took nine minutes and six seconds; and the highest altitude which was 11,358 meters.
Similar Sports
- Parachuting Sports — also known as skydiving, involving jumping from an aircraft with just a parachute.
- BASE Jumping — involves parachuting from a structure or cliff, with competitions based on landing accuracy.
- Banzai Skydiving — a form of skydiving in which the diver throws their parachute out the airplane door, waits and then jumps after it.
- Gliding — an air sport in which pilots use an unpowered aircraft.
- Hang Gliding — a type of air sport in which the rider flies a non-motorized aircraft called a hang glider.
- Paragliding — riders using para-gliders perform cross-country or acrobatic maneuvers.
- Canopy Piloting — a parachute skydiver performs aerial feats above a small body of water.
- Bodyflight — an acrobatic sport involving skydiving or a vertical tunnel to perform maneuvers while in the air.
Related Pages
- About Air Sports
- Complete list of sports
- The Encyclopedia of Sports
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