AS the slogan goes, Red Bull gives you wings and to prove it, skydivers have flown through one of Dublin’s most iconic landmarks.
On May 31 Marco Fürst, Marco Waltenspiel and Max Manow completed the first ever wingsuit flight through the Poolbeg Chimneys.
A helicopter delivered the team to a jumping height of 1,280 metres. From there Fürst, Waltenspiel and Manow set their sights for Great South Wall and headed towards the Chimneys travelling at a top speed of 253kph.
Descending to just 135 metres above the ground, the trio then performed a difficult ‘flare’ manoeuvre to regain the height needed to pull their parachutes and secure a safe landing on Shelly Banks Beach.
From the helicopter to ground the wingsuit flight lasted 65 seconds with the troupe travelling a total distance of 2,227 metres.
Fürst and Waltenspiel, both from Austria, and Manow, from Germany, have now completed over 30,000 wingsuit flights between them, but this marks their first in Ireland.
Fürst said: “It was an amazing feeling to complete this jump. The view over Dublin Bay and Poolbeg at sunrise was beautiful.
“To be the first to fly through this iconic landmark is very special. It was my first jump in Ireland, but I would love to come back.”
“We are super thankful to fly here in Ireland for the first time. For the Irish it was probably not a windy day, but with this type of jump the wind was quite a challenge for us,” added Waltenspiel.
“But that’s the cool thing in our sport - every jump is different, and that’s why we love it.”
Earlier this month the Austrian pair completed a dive through London’s Tower Bridge which saw them jump from a helicopter 3,000 feet high, diving down to 115 feet above the River Thames.
