Toni Bender: Paragliding Loses a True Legend at 68

Toni Bender, one of the most influential figures in free flight history, has passed away at the age of 68 while bivouacking in the Karwendel mountains near Innsbruck. The news has sent shockwaves through the paragliding community worldwide.

Bender was camping after completing a via ferrata when he reportedly suffered complications from dehydration. He is survived by his sister, Susanne.

A towering presence in the sport for over five decades, Bender’s contributions to paragliding were nothing short of transformative. He began his flying journey as a 15-year-old in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, inspired by Mike Harker’s legendary 1973 flight from the Zugspitze. After a brief 20-minute lesson from Harker himself, young Toni was hooked for life.

He initially competed in hang gliding before transitioning to paragliding in the late 1980s. He then spent three decades as a test pilot for Nova, where he became known as “Toni on Tour” — running testing weekends across Europe, mentoring new pilots, and sharing countless stories from his extraordinary career.

Bender’s influence extended far beyond his flying. Around 2007, when the DHV proposed moving away from the EN testing standard, it was Bender who stood up and articulated the manufacturers’ position so powerfully that the entire direction changed. As Hannes Papesh recalled on Paragliding Forum: “Toni Bender was the father of paraglider tests as we know them today.”

Perhaps his most far-reaching legacy was his 1999 north-to-south crossing of the Alps, documented in the film Lucky Icarus. That documentary caught the attention of the late Hannes Arch, who was so captivated by the format that he and Ulrich Grill conceived what would become the Red Bull X-Alps — now one of the most demanding adventure races on the planet. Toni is still credited on the X-Alps website as the inspiration behind the race.

Tributes have poured in from across the community. Nova, where Bender worked for 30 years, wrote: “With Toni, we lose a true friend and the most loyal employee you can only wish for. We say goodbye to a truly extraordinary person.”

Photographer Adi Geisegger, who worked with Toni on Lucky Icarus, remembered him as “already a king” whose film captured “the freedom, the fascination of flying and everything that makes our sport so special.”

Cross Country magazine editor Ed Ewing recalled one of his favourite Toni stories: in the early days of hang gliding, pilots had no variometers. They would soak a long-sleeved T-shirt before launch and feel temperature changes on their skin to know whether they were climbing or sinking.

“Above all, Toni was someone who never lost his passion for flying,” Nova said. “There was always that young-at-heart sportsman in him.”

Nova has opened a condolence page where pilots can share their memories of Toni.

Remembering a Pioneer

Toni Bender’s passing marks the end of an era for paragliding. From pioneering Alpine crossings to shaping the safety standards that protect every pilot today, his fingerprints are everywhere in the sport. As the community mourns, it also celebrates a life lived in the sky — exactly as Toni would have wanted.

For pilots looking to honour his spirit of adventure, having the right gear matters. Whether you’re planning a bivouac flying trip like Toni loved, or simply heading to your local site, a quality fast packing bag or a reliable concertina bag can make all the difference in protecting your wing and getting airborne quickly. Fly safe, fly free — and remember those who paved the way.