Fraser Corsan said he will conduct two jumps in his attempts to become the fastest man in the world without the assistance of a vehicle.
The first challenge, he said, would have him flying at "About the same speed as a Bugatti Veyron or a Ferrari F50, about 250 miles per hour.” Corsan will try to smash the height record of 37,000 feet by leaping from a hot air balloon 42,000 feet in the air.
He will also attempt to break records for longest time flown in a wingsuit, highest speed flown in a wingsuit and furthest distance flown in a wingsuit.
Corsan pointed out that, "Commercial aircraft will actually be below us when I exit because they go up to 37,000 ft; we're going another 5,000 feet higher than them; so around 12,000 feet higher than Mt. Everest."
The record for fastest horizontal speed reached while in a wingsuit was set in 2011 by Shinichi Ito of Japan, who reached a speed of 225.56 miles per hour during his jump in California.
Corsan, a former aerospace safety engineer, will be using a highly specialized high-performance suit designed with inlets that will inflate the wings mid-fall, enhancing his aerodynamics.
To steel himself against temperatures predicted to fall between minus 50 and minus 70 degrees centigrade at such an altitude, not counting wind chill, Corsan will be wearing several layers of thermal clothing, a tight-fitting a balaclava over his face and heated gloves.
Called "Project Cirrus," Corsan’s jumps will support British veterans by raising money for Armed Forces Charity SSAFA.
"Sixteen years ago, Fraser Corsan was one of only 15 wingsuit pilots globally," the Project Cirrus website states. "Add all 1,300 of his wingsuit jumps together and he’s flown the distance from New York to Mumbai. He’s experienced over two days of continuous freefall. He’s fallen a vertical height equal to 108 times the distance from earth to space. But it will take all the experience, intelligence, strength and courage he can muster to conquer his greatest challenge yet."
Last week, Corsan completed his final practice jump before taking Rory Mackenzie, a British Army Lance Corporal who lost his leg in 2007 during an attack in Iraq, for a tandem skydive, Mackenzie’s first.
"I've done some crazy stuff in my life and (there's) been some hairy moments in my life but nothing comes close to that," the veteran said.
Corsan’s record-breaking jumps are scheduled to take place on May 22 and May 29.
