Felix Baumgartner, Professional Daredevil, Dies Paragliding at 56
Mr. Baumgartner crashed a few yards from a swimming pool in a tourist part of Porto Sant'Elpidio on Italy's Adriatic Coast, Massimiliano Ciarpella, the town's mayor, said on Friday morning.
The cause of death was still unknown, Mr. Ciarpella said, but added that Mr. Baumgartner had become ill during his flight and had already lost consciousness by the time of impact. An autopsy will determine the exact cause of death, he said.
Hours before his death on Thursday, Mr. Baumgartner posted a picture on Instagram of a scene showing gray cloudy skies and a billowing wind sock, with the words 'too much wind.'
Mr. Baumgartner, a former Austrian paratrooper nicknamed 'Fearless Felix,' became the first person to break the sound barrier with his body on Oct. 14, 2012, when he jumped after ascending by giant helium balloon to an altitude of 128,100 feet over New Mexico in a project called 'Red Bull Stratos.'
He reached a maximum speed of 833.9 miles per hour before he opened his parachute. It took Mr. Baumgartner four minutes and 20 seconds to safely land in the New Mexico desert.
'It was harder than I expected,' he said after the jump. 'When you stand up there on top of the world, you become so humble. It's not about breaking records any more. It's not about getting scientific data. It's all about coming home.'
Millions of people watched Mr. Baumgartner's jump, which was broadcast on live television and streamed on YouTube.
'Felix was 'born to fly' and was determined to push the limits,' Red Bull said in the statement issued on his death. 'He was also smart, professional, thorough and meticulous, never leaving anything to chance.'
Mr. Baumgartner started skydiving when he was 16. He joined the Austrian military's demonstration and competition team, where he developed his skills, according to his website, and began performing skydiving exhibitions for Red Bull in 1988.
In the decades since, he completed thousands of extreme jumps, including BASE jumps and skydiving. He also became a professional helicopter pilot.
'Ever since I was a child,' he said in an interview on the Red Bull website, 'I have always wanted to jump out of a plane.'
A full obituary will follow.
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