Letter: Fly like a bird

From Alan Wheeley

The wingsuit adventurers who wish to land without parachutes might benefit from an afternoon’s observation of the goings-on in my backyard (14 November, p 41).

When birds come in to land on a tree, they swoop lower than the branch they are aiming for, then glide upwards. This slows them almost to a standstill as they land on their chosen perch.

The wingsuit flyers could follow their example: select a place like the Grand Canyon, swoop into the canyon just below the rim, then glide upwards to clear the rim and cut their speed.

Do it right, and they may not even need to bend their knees on landing. It would, of course, be safer to overshoot slightly than to fail to reach the rim.

Ashgrove, Queensland, Australia