Austrian daredevil Felix Baumgartner killed in horror paragliding crash

Austrian daredevil Felix Baumgartner - who rose to fame in 2012 after jumping from the edge of space - has died in a horror paragliding crash.

The extreme sportsman was pronounced dead this afternoon at the age of 56 following a paragliding accident in Italy. Local reports said his craft landed in a swimming pool at a holiday resort, leaving one girl on the ground injured. Sources from the local fire and rescue service said Felix had complained of feeling unwell while the paraglider was airborne, and lost control of the craft shortly after. The girl hit by his paraglider was rushed to hospital, but is not in a serious condition.

A few hours before the accident, Felix posted a video on his Instagram showing him flying with a paramotor paraglider. He also shared a photo of an airfield with the caption: "Too much wind."

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Felix Baumgartner became famous around the world in 2012 when he successfully completed a record-breaking jump from the stratosphere at a height of 24 miles (128,100ft).

After reaching the height by sitting inside a metal cabin attached to a set of giant weather balloons, he made the jump unassisted, releasing his parachute only a few miles above the ground.

Felix's descent from the 'edge of space' in a pressure suit lasted around 10 minutes, and saw him become the first man to break the sound barrier in free fall. His record for the highest parachute jump was broken in 2014 by Google executive Alan Eustace, who leapt from a height of 135,890ft.

The Stratos jump was funded by Red Bull, and became the focus of a major advertising campaign by the energy drinks brand.

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