BERCHER, Switzerland — Swiss adventurer Yves Rossy jumped from a hot-air balloon Friday and completed two aerial loops using just his custom-made jet-propelled wingsuit — the first time such maneuvers have been performed.
It was just the latest daredevil stunt by the former fighter pilot who hopes one day to fly through the Grand Canyon.
Rossy, 51, launched himself from a replica of the Breitling Orbiter — the first balloon to be piloted nonstop around the world, in 1999 — at an altitude of 7,874 feet near Lake Geneva. He then fired up the jets on his new, smaller, sleeker wingsuit to perform the loops before landing safely with a parachute.
Rossy declared himself “very happy and satisfied” with Friday’s stunt, which comes two years after his first successful flights over the nearby Swiss Alps.
