Magician David Blaine pulls off high-flying balloon ‘Ascension’ stunt
- After reaching altitude of more than 7,000 metres, Blaine released himself from balloon cluster then opened parachute to return safely to ground
- YouTube says live-streamed event drew record 770,000 viewers
Daredevil David Blaine performed his latest stunt on Wednesday, ascending nearly 25,000 feet (7,600 metres) into the Arizona sky while hanging from a cluster of jumbo-sized balloons before parachuting safely back to earth.
“It’s like magic, it feels like I’m floating in the air,” Blaine said on a radio to his team of aides back on the ground after gently lifting off from a desert airstrip in Page, Arizona, connected to dozens of balloons in an event he called “Ascension”.
YouTube said the stunt, which it live-streamed, set a record as the most-watched YouTube Originals live event ever with over 770,000 viewers.
Blaine gradually dropped small weights to speed his ascent, donned a parachute mid-flight and strapped on an oxygen mask as he neared 24,900 feet, an altitude where most commercial airliners travel.
Blaine, 47, has a history of performing high-profile and high-risk feats of endurance.
