Daredevil Paraglider Dies After 1,600ft Fall in Italian Alps

Isabel Kofler, 29, plunged 1,600ft to her death after she leapt from Ortler mountain in the Italian Alps

A 29-year-old daredevil paraglider, Isabel Kofler, has died after being swept off course by powerful winds that slammed her into a cliff on Ortler mountain in the Italian Alps. The tragic accident occurred on August 8 as she attempted a dawn flight from the summit with three friends.

Kofler, an experienced and certified paraglider as well as a member of the Arcobaleno Fly club, had reached the peak with her group before planning to descend to the valley by air. She made the first jump but immediately lost altitude when a sudden “freak” gust of wind forced her into snow-covered rocks. The impact sent her tumbling around 1,600 feet down the cliff face while her companions watched helplessly.

She was blown into a cliff face by a strong gust of wind

A mountain guide who witnessed the accident alerted emergency services, prompting a large-scale rescue operation involving the Sulden Alpine Rescue team, the Pelikan 1 air rescue helicopter, and the Guardia di Finanza’s Alpine unit. Paramedics and rescuers were lowered to the site by winch, but Kofler was pronounced dead at the scene. The recovery took about two hours and was carried out under dangerous conditions due to the high risk of falling rocks.

Authorities have opened an investigation into the exact circumstances of the fatal incident. Kofler was well known in her community for her involvement in local sports and adventurous pursuits.

She was with three other friends at the time of the accident

Her death follows other recent paragliding tragedies. On the same day in Brazil, paragliding and scuba instructor Luan Calor Cannelas Gomes da Silva, 29, and his ex-partner, Vanessa do Nascimento Alves, were killed in a tandem flight accident in Niteroi City Park, leaving behind their three-year-old daughter. Last month, Austrian extreme athlete Felix Baumgartner, famed for his record-breaking jump from the edge of space, also lost his life in a paragliding crash while on holiday in Italy.