Anna Chan: And a former special forces solider turned stuntman, is training for a death-defying jump. He plans to do two jumps from heights up to 120000 feet, thats more than 20 miles above the surface of the earth. Lets go to that story: Risking life and limb is all in a day’s work for professional stuntman and former special forces soldier Steve Truglia. Now the 45-year old is preparing for the biggest stunt of all: Later this year, Truglia plans to pilot a hot air balloon 120000 feet to the edge of space – then JUMP. [Steve Truglia, Stuntman]: “We’ve got to find the right weather conditions on the day. We’ve got to inflate a balloon without it bursting and it’s a gossamer thin plastic balloon. We’ve then got to get it launched successfully. All of my systems have got to work so that I don’t abort and I’ve got to get a hole in the jet-stream which would otherwise tear the balloon.” The current record was set back in 1960 by US airforce officer Joseph Kittinger. Kittinger survived but it could have ended in disaster after a small tear appeared in his pressurised suit. [Steve Truglia, Stuntman]: “One of his gloves depressurised and his hand swelled up because of this vapour effect of the blood trying to boil, the liquid in the cells trying to boil, that happened to his hand, had it had been his head and his brain he would have died instantly.” Trevor Dobbin is one of the experts developing the life support system that will keep Truglia alive. [Dr Trevor Dobbin, Aviation …
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