If you happen to be in Payerne, Switzerland tomorrow morning around 7:00 a. m. Tuesday morning, August 25, you might want to visit the local airport. There, the SolarStratos team will stage a demonstration flight with a free fall parachute jump by the project’s founder. Miquel Iturmendi will pilot Raphael Domjan to an unspecified height, from which Domjan will depart the aircraft and free fall, open his parachute, and join the gathered throng. Iturmendi will presumably return the airplane shortly thereafter. We’re not sure whether this flight will be available for Cockpit Virtuel viewing, but future expeditions should have that feature, much like the Perlan Project’s world altitude record ventures. Iturmendi was co-pilot on one run to 65,000 feet. This video, just a few days old, shows the airplane ready for its dual-occupant flight. In true cinema verite’ style, it forgoes narration and soundtrack music, allowing us to hear the ambient sounds of SolarStratos. A retrospective of past trials and …
