Bodyflight
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
   Leo Volkov demonstrating bodyflight | |
| Highest governing body | Fédération Aéronautique Internationale |
|---|---|
| Nicknames | Indoor Skydiving |
| Characteristics | |
| Mixed-sex | Yes |
| Type | Skydiving |
| Venue | Vertical wind tunnel |
| Presence | |
| Country or region | Worldwide (most popular in Europe and the United States) |
Bodyflight, or body flight, is an air sport in which participants use the airflow generated by vertical wind tunnels to maintain flight.[1][2]
The first recorded bodyflight was by aeronautical engineer Jack Tiffany in 1964 at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base. Tiffany was testing parachutes for the Apollo program at the time, and decided to jump into the vertical wind tunnel being used for the testing. The first vertical wind tunnel designed specifically for bodyflight was built in 1978 by Aerodium Technologies near Montreal, Canada. Since then, vertical wind tunnels designed for bodyflight have significantly improved in safety, efficiency, and usability.[3]
A variety of bodyflight competitions have been formed in recent decades, including the WindGames, the World Indoor Skydiving Championships, the Flyspot Polish Open, and more. In recent years, bodyflight has been paired with music during freestyle performances, which routinely go viral with millions of views on social media platforms.[4][5]
