Wingsuit champion who worked for NASA died by ‘misadventure’ in tragic flying accident

A wingsuit champion who previously worked for NASA died in a tragic flying accident after a planned jump, an inquest has heard.

Astronautical engineer Dr Angelo Grubisic, 38, died by misadventure following the jump in Saudi Arabia in August 2019, a coroner has ruled.

The YouTuber had worked on designing a world-record-breaking wingsuit which would also improve safety, Express and Star reports.

He had also previously worked on spacecraft propulsion for both NASA and the European Space Agency, and was a consultant engineer for the European Space Agency’s BepiColombo mission to Mercury in 2018.

Speaking at his inquest, Angelo’s mother Anita described him as “kind, down to earth and honest”.

She told the inquest: “Angelo was very enthusiastic about what he did.

“As far as lecturing, his students loved him.

“He lived to teach other people. He was just an inspiration to everyone. He touched the hearts of many.”

Speaking at his inquest, Anita said Angelo had been very experienced in wingsuiting and would always make sure there was an “escape route”.

She added: “I can see he was flying well and at low proximity.

“At the end I really don’t know what happened.” The inquest heard how he had jumped from a helicopter but it had ended with him crashing and he suffered ‘traumatic injuries’.

Reaching a conclusion of death by misadventure, Senior coroner Zafar Siddique said: “He didn’t intend to have this incident.

“He appears to have been in control, but for whatever reason he’s misjudged the height of that ridge.”

He said Angelo hadn’t had time to adjust and it was a “tragic loss”.

His family now wants to set up a charity in his memory to help those from underprivileged backgrounds towards careers in science and engineering and has launched the Dr Angelo Grubisic Young Engineers Fund.

“I mentioned to the Dean at the University of Southampton we are trying to do everything we can to carry on Angelo’s legacy,” Anita added.

“I suggested perhaps some type of mechanism that could warn wingsuiters of their altitude. He said it was worth a project in the future.”

Anyone who would like to donate to the charity can contact Angelo’s sister Karina by email at karina1@gmail.com