eli5 if a wingsuit allows you fly, why do you still need a parachute? couldn’t you glide to a landing?

Question

Why can’t you just slowly bleed off speed and just land like a flying squirrel or other animals that glide? Why do you need a parachute?

In: 6

Answer 1

A wingsuit doesn’t really work like a patachute (or at all, TBH). It just barely slows descent and is very, very difficult to steer. It isn’t powerful enough to slow descent to a safe landing speed. Parachutes are necessary for that, inasmuch as landing in a parachute is “safe.”