In a stunt called “Heaven Stunt” the 42 year old leaped 25,000 feet to Earth, setting a world record. To accomplish this feat, Aikins had to direct his body in free fall using only the air currents around him to land safely on a 100×100 net. (About a third of the size of a football field) laid out to catch him.
The jump was aired live on television via Fox Network during an hourlong special. Aikins fell for about two minutes above the California desert, appearing to soar effortlessly, arms extended, face pointing downwards. And as he neared the ground, with a mere second to go, he professionally flipped onto his back and landed without incident.
He then climbed out of the net and hugged his wife, Monica who was among a cheering group of family and friends, including his 4 year old son, Aikins’ dad, two brothers and a sister, who all worriedly watched the breathtaking stunt.
Aikins, who said during the broadcast that he’d been preparing for this jump for two years, had previously preformed 18,000 parachute jumps and preformed a variety of stunts, including for Iron Man 3.
“Everyone is calling this my coming-out jump, which is ironic considering I’ve been skydiving since the age of 16,” he said in a press release prior to the jump.
In fact, Aikins, whose grandfather co-founded a skydiving school after serving in World War II is a third generation skydiver. The family owns Skydive Kapowsin near Tacoma, Wash.
