Why the deadliest year in BASE jumping history is being called the killing season

Countries & Cities · Published 3 October 2026 Swipe more like this →

In short: BASE jumping, the act of leaping from fixed objects like cliffs and buildings, has reached a grim milestone. With wingsuit flying driving a surge in popularity among young men, the sport is seeing record-breaking fatality counts. Experts suggest that a lack of formal education is fueling this dangerous, high-stakes trend.

BASE jumping—an acronym for buildings, antennas, spans, and earth—has evolved from its 1978 origins at El Capitan into a global pursuit. While traditional BASE jumping involves parachuting from fixed objects, the recent rise of wingsuit flying has fundamentally changed the sport. Wingsuits allow participants to glide over vast horizontal distances, turning alpine cliffs into high-speed flight paths. However, this added capability comes with extreme risks, as the margins for error are razor-thin.

The year 2016 became the deadliest on record, with at least 31 fatalities. The summer months, particularly August, saw such a high concentration of deaths that practitioners dubbed it the 'Wingsuit BASE Killing Season.' The European Alps, with their accessible and massive limestone cliffs, serve as a primary destination for these jumpers, drawing them in like moths to a flame. The unofficial BASE Fatality List (BFL), which tracks deaths dating back to 1981, surpassed 300 names in 2016, with more than 260 of those occurring since 2000.

Industry experts and veteran jumpers argue that there is no single cause for the carnage. Factors such as ego, the pressure to film stunts for social media, and complacency all play a role. However, many point to a fundamental lack of education as the core issue. New participants often enter the sport without knowing how to practice safely or understanding the true extent of their own ignorance. As the community grapples with these losses, some have even called for the separation of wingsuiting from traditional BASE jumping, reflecting a deep divide over the future of the activity.

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