Meet Magali Folkner Braff: The Woman Behind Dubai’s Jaw-Dropping 1,000-ft Sky-High Swing Stunt

Dubai’s skyline witnessed one of its most breathtaking moments when a woman in red swung 1,000 feet above the city and then leapt into a freefall. The jaw-dropping stunt went viral after being shared by Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, stunning millions worldwide. Now, the woman behind the feat, Magali Folkner Braff, is revealing the emotional, terrifying and triumphant journey that led to a world-first moment in the sky.

Speaking to Gulf News shortly after returning to Belgium, Magali described the stunt  suspended from an airship high above Dubai as “the most ambitious and technically demanding project” of her career. The Guinness World Record–holding professional skydiver spent nearly a week preparing for the feat, a performance she refers to as “skybreaking.”

A Moment of Meditation Above the City-

Magali said the experience felt surreal  a mix of silence, sunrise, and the weight of the sky beneath her feet.
“At that moment, you're alone, hanging between the buildings or above the sea,” she recalled. “Watching the sun rise from that height felt like deep meditation. Every second, the light changed. It was a dream made visible.”

Suspended from an airship emblazoned with “15 Years of Rising Above Ordinary,” she glided past iconic landmarks including Burj Khalifa, Burj Al Arab, Palm Jumeirah, Ain Dubai, and Dubai Frame, celebrating 15 years of Skydive Dubai  the very place where she first jumped in Dubai 15 years ago.

Engineering the Perfect Dress-

What stunned viewers even more was her flowing red dress  a garment she designed herself to merge beauty with aerodynamics.
“I wanted something feminine, graceful, and safe,” she said. Every detail served a purpose: a shorter sleeve for parachute deployment, a raised front hem for landing, and a long, dramatic train that flowed through the sky without risking entanglement.

The Scariest Moment-

Surprisingly, the most frightening part wasn’t the BASE jump it was standing up on the swing, 1,000 feet above ground.
“You have to activate every muscle to stay balanced,” she said. “The swing moves, the wind changes… you need total focus.”

Over six hours in the air across multiple days, Magali trained through slow, careful movements before each dramatic drop.

Tears, Triumph, and Sheikh Hamdan’s Post-

After completing the final flight safely, Magali found herself overwhelmed with emotion.
“I had tears in my eyes. I was grateful it all went well,” she said.

But nothing prepared her for Sheikh Hamdan’s video post, which drew over a million views in 10 hours.
“It captured the magnitude of the stunt. Seeing myself suspended above Dubai felt like watching a dream.”

Magali has crossed paths with Sheikh Hamdan only once, but hopes the stunt honoured the city she loves. “My goal was to put Dubai on the map. I think he understood that and I’m super grateful.”

A Record-Breaking Career-

With 3,500 skydives, 150 BASE jumps, and multiple world records, Magali is no stranger to pushing boundaries. She co-founded Belgium’s first indoor skydiving facility and continues to break barriers in a male-dominated field, specialising in technical flying, formations and aerial artistry.

Much of her success, she says, is thanks to her husband and mentor, Steve Braff with whom she famously had a wedding in the sky.

The daredevil duo plan to return to Dubai in January, a city that continues to inspire Magali’s greatest feats.

Magali’s sky-breaking stunt has not only redefined aerial performance but has also cemented Dubai’s status as a global playground for the bold, the visionary, and the unstoppable.