They built. They launched. They splashed.

After a 13-year hiatus, Red Bull Flugtag crash-landed back into Cape Town at the weekend, as 43 brave (some might say delusional) teams launched themselves from Jetty 1 at the V&A Waterfront, armed with nothing but home-made flying machines, questionable physics, and the kind of confidence that can only come from months of saying, "Yeah, this'll totally work."

What the day lacked in sustained flight, it made up for in sheer spectacle, creativity, and the delightful South African ability to turn disaster into entertainment. From townships to boardrooms, university labs to family garages, the Rainbow Nation showed up with contraptions that ranged from "impressively engineered" to "definitely built on the morning of the event."

The 43 daring teams threw themselves off a nine-meter platform, hoping to impress the panel of judges, which included B-girl Courtnaé Paul, Red Bull athlete and spinner Sam Sam, Ling Ling, Okay Wasabi, and Red Bull athlete and hockey player Tati Zulu, who scored them according to the distance, creativity, and sportsmanship.  

The winning team, Thunderstruck, soared an impressive 19 meters before meeting their inevitable splashdown, a fitting end to a day where countless dreams of flight took temporary lift-off before being dunked into the water below. Every participant got wet, no one walked away with regrets, and the crowd was left exhilarated by the fearless spirit on display.

Thunderstruck pilot Scott Ternant said: “Two of our team members took part in the 2012 Red Bull Flugtag, and we had such a blast that we knew we had to come back, this time with a bigger team. We really wanted to be part of the action again. Winning the event feels incredible. Red Bull is such an iconic global brand, and it’s truly amazing to come out on top.”.