The company was formed in 1980 by Boris Popov of Saint Paul, Minnesota, after he survived a 400-foot (120 m) fall in a partially collapsed hang glider in 1975.

[3][4] BRS was founded in 1980 and introduced its first parachute model two years later in 1982, with focus on the ultralight aircraft market.

[1] In response to the economic recession of 2008 and associated falling orders, the company announced in November 2008 that it would lay-off 25% of its workforce for an indefinite time period.

[5] A small solid-fuel rocket is used to pull the parachute out from its housing and deploy the canopy fully within seconds.

Initial applications were to include the Diamond D-Jet, which is currently suspended, and the Lancair Evolution, which completed production in 2017.