High-Flying Suit

Engineering students at the University of Southampton in England have an unusual assignment: to design a special suit for their instructor to wear while he jumps out of an airplane!

Engineer Angelo Grubisic is also a skydiver. His students are developing a wingsuit, a garment that helps skydivers glide long distances.

A wingsuit has sheets of fabric between its arms and legs. As a skydiver falls, air pushes into the suit, causing the flaps to inflate into wings. Air flowing over and under the wings creates lift. This upward force keeps the skydiver in the air for much longer.

Grubisic’s students are working to make a wingsuit that’s faster and safer than older versions. They’re testing their designs using a wind tunnel. When the suit is complete, Grubisic will wear it as he skydives from a height of 13.7 kilometers (8.5 miles). If all goes according to plan, his dive will be the highest, fastest, longest, and farthest jump of its kind.