Main content
The invention of the wingsuit
In the summer of 1999, two skydivers created the first commercial wingsuit.
The wingsuit is the ultimate in extreme sports clothing. The aerodynamic outfit allows base jumpers and skydivers to free-fall for longer before opening a parachute.
The road to creating it was littered with casualties, but in 1999 skydivers Jari Kuosma and Robert Pecnik developed the first commercial wingsuits.
In 2019, Jari told Jonathan Coates how exciting, but also how dangerous they can be.
(Photo: Jari in his wingsuit. Credit: Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ)
Last on
Thu 4 Jan 2024
03:50GMT
Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ World Service except East and Southern Africa, East Asia, South Asia & West and Central Africa
More episodes
Broadcasts
- Wed 3 Jan 2024 08:50GMTΒι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ World Service
- Wed 3 Jan 2024 12:50GMTΒι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ World Service
- Wed 3 Jan 2024 18:50GMTΒι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ World Service except East and Southern Africa, News Internet & West and Central Africa
- Wed 3 Jan 2024 23:50GMTΒι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ World Service East and Southern Africa & West and Central Africa only
- Thu 4 Jan 2024 03:50GMTΒι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ World Service except East and Southern Africa, East Asia, South Asia & West and Central Africa
Podcast
-
Witness History
History as told by the people who were there