How Safe is Wingsuit Flying? (Fatality Rates & Statistics)

Wingsuit flying is an activity you have probably seen in the movies or on some wild TikTok video where someone is flying in the air. It is a form of skydiving or BASE jumping that has grown in popularity. You may wonder if you can do it, but how safe is wingsuit flying?

Wingsuit BASE jumping is among the most dangerous activities worldwide. Over half of BASE jumping fatalities involve wingsuit flyers; it is estimated that 1 in 600 wingsuit BASE jumps is fatal. Wingsuit skydiving is a much safer activity with fatalities per jump being very low.

It is important to consider many factors when concluding the number of wingsuit deaths, the rates, and the overall statistics of the sport. In this article, I do my best to help you understand the dangers by providing you with statistical studies that have been completed for wingsuit flying fatalities.

The accuracy for overall wingsuit deaths is skewed due to various reasons, such as the type of wingsuit flying and possible unrecorded deaths.

What Exactly is Wingsuit Flying?

Wingsuit flying might be perceived by many as a standalone aerial sport, but it’s not. Wingsuit flying is a discipline within the broader world of skydiving. Wingsuit flyers wear a special suit to increase their body’s surface area. This allows for an enhanced lift and extends the duration of the freefall experience.

It is important to know the difference between wingsuit skydiving and wingsuit BASE jumping when considering safety statistics. Let’s take a look at what each is:

Wingsuit Skydiving

Wingsuit Skydiving is when a skydiver jumps from an aircraft wearing the wingsuit and all their required parachute gear. At a higher altitude, this provides wingsuit skydivers more time to correct any possible errors they may have before deploying their parachute.

Also, wingsuit flying in open skies is much safer and significantly reduces the odds of crashing into a solid structure such as a mountain or building.

A wingsuit skydiver will have two parachutes: a main parachute and a reserve parachute. While a wingsuit BASE jumper only has one parachute.

Wingsuit BASE Jumping

First you need to know what BASE stands for, which is:

Buildings, Antennae, Spans (bridges), and Earth (cliffs).

BASE Jumping is a sport where you jump off of the objects listed above, the time of your jump is considerably shorter than skydiving as you are not thousands of feet above the ground. Regular BASE jumping you wear comfortable clothing along with your parachuting rig.

Wingsuit BASE jumping is when you jump from these natural objects or constructed buildings, but you are wearing that special wingsuit.

Due to the lower altitudes and proximity to solid structures, BASE jumping leaves very little room for error and is much more dangerous than skydiving in general.

Wearing a wingsuit people may think that adding a slight amount of time to your BASE jump is safer, but according to a study from 2007 to 2017 by Pierre Bouchat and Eric Brymer in the National Library of Medicine, 61.44% of BASE jumping fatalities were wingsuit jumps.

Also, consider that wingsuit BASE jumping fatalities include proximity flying deaths. A proximity flight is flying a wingsuit near mountain ridges or other terrains/objects. This increases the risk of fatality tremendously.

How Many Wingsuit Fatalities Have There Been?

It is difficult to provide an exact number of wingsuit fatalities as the numbers are skewed for various reasons. Skydiving fatalities are listed yearly by the USPA for USA deaths, but these are not divided up into the skydiving type, so it is unclear how many were wingsuit skydiving or not.

2000-2022 on average there are 23.13 skydiving deaths per year in the USA. The fatilities per jump has decreased significantly since 2000.

With the studies on BASE jumping over the years, we did not see an uptrend in BASE jumping deaths until after the year 2000. According to a study in the National Library of Medicine, from 2002 – 2007 there were 61 BASE jumping deaths, 10 were wingsuit fatalities. Another study from 2007 – 2017 reported 223 BASE jumping deaths, 137 were wingsuit jumps.

Yes, the number of BASE jumping deaths has more than doubled from the period of 2007 to 2017 compared to the period of 2002 to 2007.

Wingsuit BASE jumping fatalities are increasing; from 2002 – 2007 there were 1.67 deaths per year. From 2007 to 2017, there were 13.7 deaths per year.

For wingsuit BASE flying, it is estimated that 1 in 600 flights result in death. For skydiving today, it is estimated that 5 in 1,000,000 flights result in death.

To be able to fly a wingsuit as a skydiver, you need to complete 200 skydive jumps, and you must have your USPA-B license or equivalent. This does reduce the total number of wingsuit flyers as skydivers, so that’s something to keep in mind.

Here are various sources that provide lists of BASE jumping and Skydiving deaths:

Is the Death Rate for Wingsuit Flying Increasing?

The death rate for wingsuit BASE flying has been increasing due to the increase in popularity of the sport compared to standard BASE jumping. There has also been an increase in proximity flying, increasing deaths due to increased odds of hitting mountains and other objects due to miscalculations, weather, and poor judgment.

In the study from 2007 to 2017, out of the total fatalities, 96% of deaths were due to an object strike.

It has been concluded in these studies that the increase in flights in the mountain environment, along with the use of wingsuits, is linked to most of the fatal accidents for BASE jumping.

Safety Tips for Wingsuit Flying

There are many things to consider if you currently do or want to try wingsuit flying. I will list off some tips that are crucial to follow:

Start slowly getting the proper training from real-life life, experienced wingsuit flyers.
Understand how the gear works; study it more than anything
Stay current with all the gear, techniques, and best practices. Regularly attend refresher courses and stay in touch with the wingsuit community.
Understand how nature works, wind, weather, etc…
Avoid proximity flying (forever or for a long time). One mistake in a wingsuit can be the last one you make.
Just because you have a few good flying experiences doesn’t make you unstoppable, put the ego away and prioritize your own safety.
Stupidity will get you killed.
Not all wingsuits are created equal. Start with a beginner suit and gradually move to more advanced designs as you gain experience.
Regular Practice – Continuously practice emergency procedures. This ensures that you can react quickly and appropriately in high-stress situations.
Plan Your Exit and Flight Path – Before the jump, understand the terrain, identify potential hazards, and have a clear flight path in mind. Always have an exit strategy!
Maintain Your Equipment – Regularly inspect, maintain, and replace your gear. Don’t cut corners when it comes to equipment safety.
Have a trusted jump buddy! Especially when you’re still learning, jump with a more experienced buddy who can guide and monitor your flight.
Don’t let peer pressure or the thrill of the moment push you into situations you’re not comfortable with or prepared for.
Continuous Learning! Even if you become experienced, there’s always something new to learn. Engage with the community, attend workshops, and never stop growing your knowledge and your skills.

Final Thoughts

Wingsuit flying, whether as a part of skydiving or BASE jumping, offers an adrenaline rush and a unique experience of human flight. However, its captivating appeal shouldn’t overshadow the inherent risks.

As highlighted throughout this article, wingsuit BASE jumping is a high-risk activity, with its fatality rate substantially higher than that of wingsuit skydiving. The statistics indicate an increasing trend in deaths, especially in proximity flights where you purposely fly near mountains and other terrains.

For those interested in this sport, it’s very important to remember that meticulous training, understanding of the gear, respect for nature, and continuous learning are non-negotiable. Safety must always come first. Engaging in wingsuit flying is a deeply personal decision, but whatever one’s choice may be, it’s critical to be informed and prepared of the possibility of death.

Jamie Penney

Jamie is the founder of Action Sporter. He is the chief zipline writer and the lead editor. He has 5 years of zipline experience being a tour guide in Newfoundland. Most of the time you can find Jamie adventure traveling, hiking, skiing, skateboarding, or anything action related!