Lawsuit scuppers attempt to break sound barrier in stratosphere free fall

by Steven Mostyn - Oct 13 2010, 12:59

Action adventurer Felix Baumgartner won't be navigating the space between bravery and stupidity any time soon after a lawsuit this week scuppered his planned parachute jump from the planet's stratosphere.

More pointedly, core event sponsor Red Bull has announced its decision to withdraw its support for Baumgartner's stunt after a man launched a lawsuit claiming an existing deal with Red Bull to partake in a similar daredevil project.

According to Daniel Hogan's claim, which was filed in April of 2010, he and a group of associates initially discussed the possibility of performing the high-risk, high-altitude leap with Red Bull officials back in 2004, only to be dropped entirely from the project in late 2005.

In answering Mr. Hogan's accusations, Red Bull has said the idea of breaking the sound barrier during a free-fall parachute jump isn't exactly an original idea, and certainly not something Mr. Hogan himself can lay an exclusive claim upon.

“Despite the fact that many other people over the past 50 years have tried to break Colonel (Ret.) Joe Kittinger's record, and that other individuals have sought to work with Red Bull in an attempt to break his record, Mr. Hogan claims to own certain rights to the project and filed a multi-million dollar lawsuit earlier this year in a Californian court,” the company outlined in a statement.

According to the legal filing, Red Bull is guilty of defrauding Mr. Hogan by illegally drawing from his technical ideas regarding the project and of using his original plans to create publicity and marketing around a similar stunt.

“Red Bull has acted appropriately in its prior dealings with Mr. Hogan, and will demonstrate this as the case progresses,” the energy drink manufacturer added. “Due to the lawsuit, we have decided to stop the project until this case has been resolved.”

So that's not all bad news for Baumgartner then, who might have to wait a little while but could yet become the first human to break the sound barrier without the aid of a vehicle... by throwing himself from a balloon some 23 miles above the planet. Specially-made spacesuit or otherwise, that's a five-minute leap of pure insanity in our book.

Baumgartner's record-breaking attempt was scheduled to take place high above New Mexico before the close of 2010.

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