Was it a bird; was it a plane?
 |
| images.nationalgeographic.com |
No: it was Felix Baumgartner taking a
quick trip to France without using a ferry or the channel tunnel! He
was the first person to skydive across the English channel.
It was on the 31st July 2003 (ten years ago today) at 05:09
hours, that Felix leapt out of a plane at 9000 metres above Dover, England, and headed for Cap Blanc-Nez, near Calais, France, some 35 kilometres away.
All he needed for his travel was an aerodynamic jumpsuit with a 1.8
metre XC-K1 composite carbon wing strapped to his back, a tank of
oxygen to assist his breathing, and a parachute to help him land as
safely as possible.
After exiting the plane he initially
reached speeds of 360 kilometres per hour with this reducing to 220
kph during most of his 6 minute and 22 seconds flight. Cloud cover
that early morning made his journey a little difficult and after
landing Felix said: “I couldn't see the other side so I had no
reference point. I was flying over the clouds all the time. But, in
the last 2,000 metres I could see those lights right over there so I
knew I was going to make it.” Whilst recovering from the exhausting
flight safely on French soil he told a BBC reporter: “It was total
freedom. If you step out of the aeroplane at this altitude it's
perfect because you see the sun rise . . . It's the beginning of the
day. You're totally alone, there's just you, your equipment, your
wing – and your skills. I like it.”
When I'm crossing the channel from
Dover to Calais, I think I'll stick to using my car, a train, and the
channel tunnel – even though it will take me 35 minutes.
