Vincent (Vince) Reffet

Vincent “Vince” Reffet was a singular force in the world of human flight: a freefly champion, aerial pioneer, and fearless innovator whose vision carried him from competition podiums to the summit of Mont Blanc, the rooftop of the Burj Khalifa, and the skies above Dubai in a jet-powered wing. In a career defined by firsts, Vince did not merely push the boundaries of what was possible. He redrew them entirely.

Vince made his first skydive in 2000 at the age of 15, beginning a journey that would see him become one of the most accomplished and recognized athletes in the history of freeflying. Alongside his longtime teammate and partner Fred Fugen, together known as the Soul Flyers, Vince built a competitive record that has never been surpassed in the discipline. From 2004 to 2009, the duo remained unbeaten, capturing three World Championship titles (2004, 2006, 2008), two World Games titles (2005 and 2009), and the World Cup in 2005. Their technical mastery, creative vision, and seamless synchronicity set a new gold standard for every freefly team that followed.

Yet even as his competitive legacy was being written, Vince was already looking beyond the podium. In 2014, he and Fred conceived and executed two record-breaking feats that captured the attention of the world: a high-altitude freefly skydive above Mont Blanc, Europe’s highest peak, from 33,000 feet, and a Guinness World Record BASE jump from the Burj Khalifa, the world’s tallest building, in Dubai. Both events generated massive global media coverage, with the Mont Blanc jump alone accumulating over 16 million views on YouTube and earning coverage from CNN, the BBC, USA Today, the NY Post, and The Telegraph, among many others.

In 2015, Vince was officially announced as Yves “Jetman” Rossy’s protégé and went on to perform the world’s first-ever twin human formation flight in a jet-powered wing. That same year, he and Yves flew the Jetman, the world’s smallest flying machine, in formation alongside an Airbus A380, the world’s largest passenger aircraft. In 2016, the Jetman team flew alongside the elite French Patrouille de France jet fighter pilots. These achievements stand as milestones in the history of aviation.

The years that followed brought achievement after achievement. In 2018, Vince and Fred made history by flying through the open door of a Pilatus Porter in mid-air following a BASE jump from the summit of the Jungfrau in the Swiss Alps. He flew the Jetman through a 135-meter-high rock arch at Tianmen Mountain in China, over the UNESCO World Heritage Site in the Dolomites, and, in a low-altitude flight, over Sheikh Zayed Road in Dubai at 150 km/h, just 200 meters above moving traffic. In 2020, Vince achieved the first-ever vertical ground takeoff in the Jetman, a feat that garnered over 12 million views and marked another moment of genuine aviation history.

His vision extended beyond performance into the very tools of the sport. Collaborating closely with engineers and designers, Vince played a central role in conceptualizing and developing the MUTANT harness by UPT, a revolutionary advancement in canopy piloting equipment that has since become essential gear for serious competitors worldwide.

On November 17, 2020, Vince Reffet passed away during a training accident in Dubai, UAE. He was 36 years old. His passing left a profound void in the global skydiving and aviation communities, felt by teammates, mentors, fans, and the countless athletes whose lives he had touched and inspired.

Vince Reffet was more than an athlete. He was a pioneer who brought the artistry of human flight to millions and elevated the standard of what is achievable in the sky. His induction into the International Skydiving Hall of Fame honors a life of extraordinary achievement and a legacy that will inspire skydivers, BASE jumpers, wingsuit pilots, and future generations of aerial athletes for years to come.