Balussery: Jithin Vijayan hailing from Balussery in Kozhikode set records in skydiving. He now holds the world record for free fall time and the Asian record for height in skydiving. Jithin works as the director of N-Dimensions Solutions Private Limited, an IT company in Ernakulam. He performed the daring act, by jumping off an aircraft flying at a height of 43,000 feet from the ground level, at Tennessee state in the United States.

Jithin set a world record in the category of belly flying or flat flying. He registered 2.47 minutes of free fall beating the previous world record of 2.30 minutes. Jithin, who had tied the Indian national flag to his hand at the time of the act, also surpassed the Asian record of heights with his attempt.

Jithin who secured A grade licence in skydiving from Spain, had trained in places including Dubai, Abu Dhabi, and UK. Son of Balussery natives Vijayan and Sathyabhama, Jithin did his graduation at Vadakara engineering college. He currently resides in Ernakulam with his wife and son.

 “Those moments before opening the parachute, when you are approaching the ground at 400 KM/H; that’s the most difficult part of the sport,” Jithin tells Mathrubhumi.