AssetID: 55966854
Headline: Danger on a train: Daredevil completes death-defying stunt by paragliding under Swiss train as it crosses viaduct
Caption: **VIDEO AVAILABLE: CONTACT INFO@COVERMG.COM TO RECEIVE** BY MARK WORGAN A daredevil paraglider has completed an unusual aerial stunt at one of Switzerland's best-known railway landmarks by slaloming through the pillars of the Landwasser Viaduct as a train crossed overhead. Patrick von Känel, 32, carried out the flight at Filisur in the canton of Graubünden, using a series of steep turns to weave between the bridge's supports. The 65-metre-high viaduct carries trains across the Landwasser valley and is one of Switzerland's most recognisable railway structures. The stunt required repeated test flights, highly precise manoeuvres, almost windless conditions and exact timing with the arrival of the train. It took 20 attempts before von Känel successfully completed the feat. The flight followed a slalom course around the viaduct's pillars, with von Känel using steeply banked turns known as wing-overs. The manoeuvres rapidly increase a paraglider's rate of descent, requiring close control of speed, altitude and direction. The bridge's pillars provided a narrow sequence of reference points, leaving little room for deviation. Wind was one of the biggest challenges, as Von Känel needed almost no wind to maintain the required flight path, leaving only a very limited window in which conditions were suitable. He carried out numerous test flights and closely monitored the weather before attempting the final run. The landing presented another challenge. The available landing area was just a few metres beyond the viaduct and was surrounded by trees and shrubs. After completing the final sharp turn, von Känel had to immediately prepare for his descent and land within the small available space. Timing the flight with the train was equally crucial. He had to synchronise his take-off, speed and turns with the arrival of the red Rhaetian Railway train on the viaduct. “Coordinating all these different factors precisely and executing them perfectly was very challenging,” he says. The successful attempt came on von Känel's twentieth try. “It was like playing the lottery,” he says. “I was shaking all over when we finally succeeded on the twentieth try.” The idea for the project developed from an earlier tunnel flight and an image von Känel had seen on Swiss television. An animation showed the red logo of Switzerland's national broadcaster travelling through the Landwasser Viaduct as a Rhaetian Railway train passed overhead. That image inspired the project, which was designed around the iconic railway landmark. Von Känel's flight combined close-proximity flying, steep turns, and precise timing to complete the slalom around the viaduct's pillars while the train crossed above him.
Keywords: feature,photo,video,red bull,paragliding,switzerland,stunt
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