Skydivers flew through London’s Tower Bridge at 153 miles per hour

  • Wingsuiters have flown through Tower Bridge, London, UK
  • They reached eye-watering speeds of 153mph
  • It was a history-making stunt

Published on May 16, 2024 at 8:07 PM (UTC+4)
by Amelia Jean Hershman-Jones

Last updated on May 17, 2024 at 11:52 AM (UTC+4)
Edited by Tom Wood

In a white-knuckle ride that made history, skydivers have flown through Tower Bridge, London, UK in wingsuits – and they reached eye-watering speeds of 153mph

Austrian freefall skydivers, Marco Fürst and Marco Waltenspiel, became the first people to skydive through the iconic landmark wearing wingsuits.

And, per Waltenspiel, it took them ‘200 training jumps’ to prepare for those brief, yet nail-biting moments.

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The death-defying stunt by Red Bull took place on the morning of 12 May and involved getting to an altitude of 914m (3,000ft) in a helicopter.

They reached the jump site that was 1.2km (0.75 miles) west of the bridge itself.

From there, the adrenaline-seekers traveled 1,200m (3,937 ft) in a mere 45 seconds.

The pair landed safely on barges lying in wait on the River Thames below.

The above footage was captured with 24 cameras waiting at 14 separate positions along their proposed flight path.

While elsewhere in London, Supercars worth millions of dollars can be rented from your room at a high-end London hotel.

But this isn’t simply a case of freefall for the Red Bull team- some real precision was needed in the stunt.

At speeds of over 246 km/h (53mph), the pair passed through the gap in the bridge between its two towers around 30m (100ft) above the ground.

Measuring 65 x 32m (213 x 105 ft), there wasn’t a huge margin for error.

Once safely through the gap, the Austrains performed a ‘flare maneuver’.

This involves climbing sharply upwards to a height of around 80m (280 ft) before pulling their parachute and landing.

“I’m really grateful to work with Marco and such a good team to bring our dream to life,” Fürst enthused.

“I just feel amazing. The jump was beautiful and everything worked out really good.

“In the last two and a half years we planned everything through and had the best preparation and training.”

With very different scenery, one man has completed a wingsuit dive at unprecedented proximity to Giza’s Pyramids – giving him a whole new POV on ancient history.

Speaking of flying fast from the English capital, this supersonic nuclear-powered plane would fly from London to New York in less time than a soccer game.

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London-based Amelia cut her journalistic teeth covering all things lifestyle, wellness and luxury in the UK capital. Fast-forward a decade and the experienced content creator and editor has put pen to paper for glossy magazines, busy newsrooms and coveted brands. When her OOO is on you can find her spending quality time with her young family, in the gym or exploring the city she loves.