Today, five daredevil wingsuit flyers will leap from a helicopter 3,300 meters above Monaco, launching an extraordinary flight to showcase the Principality’s colours. With red and white smoke streaming behind them in honour of Monaco, this event promises a breathtaking spectacle as the flyers soar over the Mediterranean landscape, creating a unique visual for early risers to catch…
Organized by Sky Unit, a team of seasoned wingsuit flyers from the Nice Parachutist Circle, this jump is more than just a display of skill. Led by Monaco-based physiotherapist Tristan Doucet, the group hopes to introduce the public to the art and thrill of wingsuit flying. The flyers held a final briefing Wednesday evening, meticulously reviewing each technical element from trajectory planning to equipment checks. “This is a unique moment,” Doucet explained, noting the dedication required to ensure a seamless performance. “We’ve put in extensive preparation to captivate viewers and hopefully spark interest in this fascinating discipline.”
The flight will begin with a take-off from Monaco’s heliport, with the team quickly ascending to their launch altitude. Once dropped, they’ll free-fall through the sky at thrilling speeds between 150 and 250 km/h. Each flyer will wear a wingsuit equipped with cameras to capture every moment of the descent, a two to three minute journey toward the Mediterranean coastline. The group plans to deploy their parachutes at around 900 meters, landing on the Golfe Bleu beach—a picturesque spot popular with local paragliders.
A Brief History of Wingsuit Flying
The development of wingsuit flying as a sport traces back to early 20th-century pioneers. In 1912, Franz Reichelt, a French tailor, attempted one of the first jumps from the Eiffel Tower with a parachute-like suit, though the attempt tragically failed.
The modern era of wingsuit flying began in the 1990s, thanks to French skydiver Patrick de Gayardon. His breakthrough design brought the concept closer to an airfoil, achieving the balance between lift and control that allows today’s wingsuit flyers to glide substantial distances. This redefined wingsuits as a viable sport, with jumps now combining freefall dynamics with aerodynamic control.
In 1999, the BirdMan Classic wingsuit, designed by Finnish skydiver Jari Kuosma and Croatian Robert Pečnik, became the first wingsuit marketed for public use. Their innovation emphasized safety and accessibility, and BirdMan also pioneered instructor training to help beginners learn proper techniques. This opened wingsuit flying to a wider audience, and the discipline quickly grew in popularity worldwide.
Today, wingsuit flying is more than just a sport; it’s an aerial art form combining technical expertise with intense physical training. With suits now equipped for greater glide ratios and aerial stability, modern wingsuit flyers achieve flight paths that seemed impossible decades ago. Beyond skydiving, wingsuit BASE jumping has emerged, where flyers leap from cliffs, soaring close to rocky terrain at high speeds, adding another layer of excitement—and risk.
Sky Unit’s ambitious jump above Monaco pays tribute to the evolution of wingsuit flying and captures the thrill of this extreme sport. As Doucet notes, “Our goal is to introduce wingsuit flying to the public, offering a memorable visual and showing how much the sport has advanced.” Through the team’s synchronized descent, Sky Unit hopes not only to celebrate the wingsuit flying legacy but to inspire spectators to learn more about this incredible airborne pursuit.
Photo by Jonathan Francis
