61 wingsuit skydivers set formation record over California

Published 10:22 am Wednesday, October 21, 2015

LOS ANGELES — Sixty-one wingsuit skydivers have flown into the record books, creating a diamond-shaped formation while soaring over California before breaking apart and floating to the ground.

The group set the record for the largest such formation Saturday at Skydive Perris, 80 miles southeast of Los Angeles, Taya Weiss, the jump’s lead organizer, said Tuesday. It shattered the old record set by 42 flyers in June.

Weiss said the record was verified by a panel of judges from Fédération Aéronautique Internationale, the international group that keeps track of skydiving and other aviation-related records.

Email newsletter signup

One judge on the ground witnessed the jumpers leap from three separate aircraft at 13,500 feet, create the formation and then break apart at 5,500 feet. Two other judges reviewed photos of the jump later and confirmed Monday it was official.