Felix Baumgartner, the Austrian skydiver known for his iconic 2012 space jump, has passed away in a paragliding accident in Italy at the age of 56.
On Thursday, July 17, Felix lost control of his motorised paraglider while flying over Porto Sant'Elpidio and fell to the ground near the swimming pool of a hotel.
The town's mayor, Massimiliano Ciarpella, shared that initial reports have suggested that he might have suffered a sudden medical issue mid-air and offered condolences for his death.
Felix earned his fame in October 2012, when the Austrian slipped into a specially made suit and jumped from a balloon 24 miles above Earth, becoming the first skydiver to break the sound barrier.
He made the historic jump over Roswell, New Mexico, reaching a peak speed of over 833 mph, on the 65th anniversary of iconic American pilot Chuck Yeager's flight shattering the sound barriers on October 14, 1947.
Talking about his experience in an interview, Felix noted, "When I was standing there on top of the world, you become so humble, you do not think about of breaking records anymore, you do not think of about gaining scientific data. The only thing you want is to come back alive."
With Joe Kittinger as his mentor, the altitude Felix jumped from also marked the highest-ever for a skydiver, shattering the previous record set in 1960 by his guide himself.
