On the penultimate weekend of March, wingsuit pilot Sebastián ‘Ardilla’ Álvarez broke three world records by a considerable margin as part of the Red Bull Starman mission. With his most recent stunt, the Chilean athlete has once again pushed the boundaries of human flight and set a new benchmark in the sport of aviation.
Early in the morning of 22nd March 2025, Álvarez jumped with his wingsuit from a twin-engine Piper Cheyenne 400LS aircraft, piloted by Michael Mullins, at an altitude of 12,640 metres (41,470 ft) over the West Tennessee Skydiving centre in Whiteville, USA. Then, the skydiver immediately plunged into a jet stream. Harnessing its boost and making precise body adjustments was able to maintain control and, within only 30 seconds, reach an incredible speed of 550 kph, thus breaking the previous record of 397 kph. What’s more, during the descend lasting 11 minutes and 1 second, Álvarez covered a distance of 53.45 kilometres. The previous longest wingsuit flight lasted 9 minutes and 31 seconds, while its distance was 29.06 kilometres. That means the Chilean skydiver broke two more records, almost doubling the distance related one.
‘It’s not just incremental changes on the records. It’s significant margins on all three. You can always optimise for one of time, distance, or speed by changing the way you fly the wingsuit but breaking all three in one flight is a big challenge. For example, you can fly it really slowly, and you’ll float a lot, and that will give you a really good time, but horrible distance and speed. For speed, usually, your best thing is to dive quite a lot to build energy, but that kills your time and distance. The fact that all three records look as good as they do, means that he was just flying cleanly. It was a very well-balanced and efficient flight.’ – said Michael Cooper, an official judge for the Fédération Aéronautique Internationale (FAI – World Air Sports Federation) about the Álvarez’s achievement.
Sebastián Álvarez’s successful record-breaking stunt was preceded by two years of detailed planning and preparation. Álvarez followed a specially adjusted training schedule to increase the strength of his body, crucial when flying at such high speeds. As part of his preparation, the Chilean wingsuit pilot spent 11 hours in a wind tunnel in Sweden, completed highly technical aerobic training, and performed strength exercises focused on strengthening his arms. At the same time, he followed a strict weight-loss diet to lose body weight and become even lighter in the air.
The already mentioned jetstreams – narrow air currents moving fast in the upper layers of the atmosphere – were the key to increase speed during gliding. At such high altitudes, wind can reach speeds close to 200 kph and air temperature can be as low as -100°C. Therefore, this flight was a true physical and mental endurance test for Álvarez.
The thin air at such high altitudes contains only one-sixth of the oxygen at sea level. In addition, dynamic pressure is much lower in flight in such a thinned air compared to lower altitudes, making every gram and every movement count even more. Both of these factors posed additional challenges for Álvarez in breathing and stability during his flight.
Such harsh conditions required Álvarez to use an in-flight breathing system with an oxygen mask and purpose-designed helmet to protect the wingsuit pilot from the brutal wind and sub-zero temperatures, and to ensure a constant flow of air for breathing. Without the custom-made helmet and the protection it provides, the oxygen valves could freeze, causing Álvarez to lose consciousness within seconds, resulting in an uncontrollable fall. The skydiver also wore electrically heated layers under his wingsuit to protect himself from frostbite.
Álvarez and his team worked with industry experts to improve the gear for his multiple-record-breaking flight. His wingsuit was fitted with custom-designed aerodynamic wingtips extensions, in order to increase the aspect ratio and gliding performance of the wings, similarly to how it is done in an aeroplane. Drawing further inspiration from aviation, fairings around the feet have been added to reduce drag and allow for reaching higher speeds and longer glide distances.
Matt Gerdes from Squirrel Wingsuits manufacturing company explained that, although the wingsuit had improved Álvarez’s performance, flying with such a modified suit still required tremendous physical strength and expert skills from its pilot to maintain control: ‘Seba’s wingsuit is modified to allow for his high-altitude equipment and the special demands of his mission. This is not an easy suit to fly; it is the most physically and technically demanding wingsuit in our range. It’s hard to get performance increases, normally, there is a compromise; the increased surface area and wingtip extensions require a lot of physical strength and technique to handle. Seba has been training for a long time for this.’
Sebastián Álvarez is a former Chilean Air Force pilot with nearly two decades of wingsuit flying experience. He became known for his precise, agile flights, earning him the nickname ´Ardilla´ (Spanish word for ´squirrel´). Álvarez thoroughly studies, plans, and works out every detail before attempting every stunt.
His feats include flying in and out of Villarrica Volcano in Chile in 2021 and performing parachute BASE jump concluded with surfing the world’s longest artificial wave in 2024, about which we informed in one of our articles – Chilean wingsuit flyer made aviation history with world’s first stunt. With his latest achievement, Álvarez has further strengthened his reputation as a pioneer in aviation sports.
‘This mission was about taking human flight to the next level – not just for me, but to show what’s possible when you dream big and commit fully. No one had ever attempted to break all three records in a single jump, and there were, of course, moments of doubt, but with the right preparation, training, and technology, we made it happen. I’ve always said I marry my projects, and this one has been an epic journey – one that proves discipline and perseverance can turn the impossible into reality. I hope this inspires others to chase their own limits because boundaries exist to be pushed.’ – said Sebastián Álvarez asked about the impact of his Red Bull Starman mission.
Cover photo: Joerg Mitter / © Red Bull Content Pool. Information from the Red Bull company press release were used.
