This is real human flight - continual improvements in wingsuit design enables competitors to keep pushing the boundaries of performance.
In Australian and international competition there are two categories - Wingsuit Performance for solo flight and Wingsuit Acrobatics for team event.
WINGSUIT PERFORMANCE
Competitors exit the aircraft between 10,500 ft and 11,000 ft. They have three different tasks to complete - Speed, Distance and Time. There are nine rounds in competition, three rounds per task. The winner is determined by the competitor who scores the highest over all nine rounds.
A GPS tracking device is used to log the performance of each competitor during the competition window (between 2,500m and 1,500m AGL) in their chosen task.
- Speed - the aim is to fly as fast as possible. The score is the average horizontal speed over the ground achieved in the competition window. The speed is determined by the straight-line distance flown over the ground divided by the time spent in the competition window. Average speeds over 300 km/h are being reached!
- Distance - the aim is to fly as far as possible. The score is the horizontal distance covered over the ground in the competition window. Top competitors are reaching distances over 5 kilometres in a 1 km vertical window!
- Time - the aim is to fly as slow vertically as possible. The score is the total time spent in the competition window. Top competitors reach times over 90 seconds!
🏅 Meet the Wingsuit Performance Australian Parachute Team members:
WINGSUIT ACROBATICS
Competitors exit the aircraft 12,500 feet. Teams include two performers and one videographer. There are seven rounds in competition made up of compulsory manoeuvres and free routines.
Compulsory rounds involve a series of randomly drawn moves of loops, rolls, transitions and docks to be executed within the competition window. Explanations of the compulsory moves can be found on pages 102-104 of the Sporting Code.
Free routine choreography is made up by the team to show their creativity and style. Scoring is based on difficulty and execution of moves and presentation by the video.
🎥 Watch footage of wingsuit acrobatics from 2017 Russian Championships HERE