FELIX Baumgartner, the Austrian who set a dramatic new world record 24.2-mile jump from the edge of space to Earth in what was the world's first supersonic skydive has announced he is to retire from "the daredevil business".

The 43-year-old who completed the four-minute 22-second free-fall from 128,000ft, after a two-hour and 37-minute ascent in a balloon capsule said he now intends to settle down with his girlfriend and pursue a second career in flying rescue helicopters.

He said: "I'm retired from the daredevil business. I want to find a nice decent job as a helicopter pilot. I'll fight fires and rescue people. No e-mails, no phone calls."