Recently, I decided that I wanted to fly – so I tried indoor skydiving

I’m a thrill seeker. I’m rarely fazed by most things, particularly those that make me come out of my shell or allow me to experience something different, mentally, physically, emotionally and spiritually. I love to see how far I can push myself and my mind.

Recently, I decided that I wanted to fly. (I can hear R Kelly as my soundtrack song…) But no, seriously, I’m talking about the kind of flying that lets you feel like a bird, just floating above and looking down at the world from a different point of view. I wasn’t psyched enough yet to jump out of an aeroplane, but I did find an alternative with the same results. It’s called indoor skydiving.

Imagine a wind tunnel that could be used for testing the aerodynamics of an F1 racing car, turn it upright, step into the airflow and you are skydiving.

The idea of flying indoors was first tried by the American military in 1964. In 1982, a couple of vertical wind tunnels opened in Tennessee and Las Vegas and the first Sky Venture tunnel opened in Orlando, Florida in 1998.

So here I was at Airkix in Milton Keynes, London, the only indoor skydiving facility in Europe, dressed in the most unflattering orange and blue overall that made me look like an astronaut, a helmet, flying goggles and sneakers. I watched the instruction video and then received the safety prep talk. This is peanuts, I thought, this whole indoor flying seems a bit overrated!

As I made my way towards the tunnel, I couldn’t help but feel like Tom Cruise in Top Gun, the scene where he’s all geared up and heading towards the planes… It’s now or never, no turning back! My heart was thumping in my hands.

I decided to be last as to watch everyone else and get a sense of the technique before I ploughed myself in. My turn arrived. I stood up and made my way to the door. I couldn’t keep my eyes off the tunnel. I guess that is the moment in skydiving that you have to decide if you’re going to jump or not. If I let go of the instructor, I will be freefalling at 1200mph in a vertical wind tunnel. That’s when it hit me: I can either stand at the door consumed by fear (or was it adrenalin?), or I could just let go and fly.

Can you see me in the tunnel, the wind blowing like a tornado and me in the middle. Can you hear my heart beating? That is the beat of “I did it”. I’m flying! It is exhilarating! It was a moment that lingered forever, but one that went by so quickly.