Two years of preparation and nearly 200 jumps were necessary for the two Austrian parachutists to achieve the feat of passing under London’s famous Tower Bridge in a wingsuit. Adorned with their wings in the colors of their sponsor, Marco Fürst and Marco Waltenspiel made extreme sports history on Sunday morning.
“Over the last two and a half years we have planned everything and had the best preparation and training,” Marco Fürst finally declared on Sunday after landing like a flower on a barge anchored on the Thames. Shortly before, he and his playmate were still on board a helicopter flying above London at 3,000 feet. When the aircraft reached this altitude, at 5:22 a.m., the two Marcos had a magnificent view of the British capital and their objective, Tower Bridge.
At 246 km/h just 30 m from the water
When they set off, everything happened very quickly. It only took the two parachutists 45 seconds to cover the 1,200 m that separated them from their landing point. Meanwhile, at a maximum speed of 246 km/h, they had to aim for a 65 m by 32 m window between the bridge piers, about 30 m from the water surface.
But after the bridge, the most difficult part remained to be done. The two men performed a chandle, called a “flare” maneuver, to regain some altitude in order to lose speed and be able to open their parachutes. “I just feel amazing. The jump was magnificent and everything went very well,” added Marco Fürst once back on dry land.