UK based adrenalin junkie of the skies Gary Connery is acknowledged as the actual very first skydiver worldwide to land safely on ground without a parachute, albeit at a comparatively slightly lower height of 2400 feet.
The difference between his jump and Aikins' is that Connery used a wing-suit and free-fell into a targeted landing without a chute, while Aikins landed in netting in orthodox skydive-freefall style.
UK based Connery, now 46, made his first parachute jump at the young age of 23 as part of his army training. He is one of Britain's best known BASE jumpers and has also worked as a stunt double for A-list actors such as Gary Oldman, Leonardo Dicaprio, Rowan Atkinson and many more.
"Outside of the technical side and months of physical prep that goes into something like this, key thing is the emotional aspects of knowing you are about to do something major," Connery told Sputnik.
"All I can say is that stunts like this feel euphoric! The adrenalin hit you get is insane and after his recent jump, even Luke himself described that it can overwhelm you to the extent where you can't even think straight! Lucky for him, he did and his jump was a success!" he said.
Commenting further on Luke's jump, Connery said:
"Luke smashed it and added his name to the extreme sports exponents who continue to push the bar higher and show others that with courage, commitment, and belief and endeavor anyone with the ability and guts can achieve one's dreams. That's the way us so-called 'daredevils' all look at what we do!"
When it comes to daredevil stunts of this stature, it is a global culture of feats adopted by a growing number of modern athletes, many of whom attract high-end endorsement opportunities and big-budget backing to execute.
In his comment to Sputnik, Connery also conveyed the actual message he sent to Luke prior to his attempt:
"Be strong Luke, be courageous, this is all about you and what you believe in. No suffering of the fools who do not believe in you. Visualize it, believe it, Do it! One love brother!"
