First Payung Driver Who Beats Voice Speed Dies In Accident In Italy

Illustration. (WikiI Images-Pixabay)

JAKARTA - extreme athlete Felix Baumgartner, died in an accident on the east coast of Italy on Thursday 17 July. He died at the age of 56.

Baumgartner was the first paratroopers to jump faster than the speed of sound when jumping 39 kilometers above the stratosphere (second layer of the atmosphere) in 2012.

Italian firefighters confirmed the death, saying a paragliding fell into the side of a swimming pool in Porto City, Sant Elpidio.

"Our community is deeply affected by the tragic disappearance of Felix Baumgartner, a leading figure in the world, a symbol of courage and enthusiasm for extreme flights," said Mayor Massimiliano Ciarpella, Friday, July 18, quoted from AP.

Baumgartner, known as Felix who does not know fear, shocked the world more than a decade ago when he became the first human to break the boundary of sound with only his body.

He wore pressurized clothing and jumped from a capsule that was lifted more than 39 kilometers above Earth by giant helium balloons over New Mexico.

When jumping, Baumgartner reached a top speed of 843.6 mph, or the equivalent of 1.25 times faster than the speed of sound during nine minutes of decline.

At one point, it experienced a potentially dangerous flat spin while still at supersonic speed. The crew said at the Red Bull Stratos control center, Baumgartner rotated for 13 seconds.

When I stand at the top of the world, you become so humble, you no longer think about breaking records, you no longer think about getting scientific data. The only thing you want is to come back alive," Baumgartner said after landing in the eastern New Mexico desert, at the time.