On August 16, 1960, Joseph William Kittinger became the closest thing the world had ever seen to a real-life superhero as he rushed through the skies from 102,800ft (31km) up, hitting the lower atmosphere at several hundred miles per hour.
The freefall records that Joe set during that Excelsior III mission, which still stand today, are far from his only accomplishments. The test pilot’s long career has logged more benchmarks than probably even he can count, helping to enhance the safety of pilots and advancing aeronautical science. Among all of the skilled engineers, innovative designers and brilliant scientists working on Red Bull Stratos, Joe is the only one to have personally experienced anything like the challenge facing Felix Baumgartner, with whom he is pictured, above.
Born in 1928, Kittinger became a test pilot in the 1950s, flying experimental jet fighters and participating in aerospace medical research. Projects such as Manhigh and Excelsior were designed to test the limits of human endurance at the furthest reaches of the earth’s atmosphere to determine whether human beings could survive in space, and it was Kittinger who became the guinea pig.
After surviving a near-fatal equipment malfunction in 1959, Kittinger attempted the record balloon jump again in August 1960, this time successfully. That same year, President Dwight D Eisenhower awarded him the Harmon Trophy for outstanding accomplishments in aeronautics.
'The skill set Joe brings to the [Red Bull Stratos] mission is invaluable' – Art Thompson
Kittinger, however, didn’t stop there. He volunteered for duty in Vietnam and did three tours as a squadron commander, during which time his fighter jet was shot down and Kittinger captured and held for almost a year as a POW. By the time he retired from the USAF in 1978, Kittinger was a colonel, and his decorations included the Distinguished Flying Cross, Silver Star, Air Medal and Purple Heart.
But still he wasn’t done. In 1983, he set a record for the longest distance flown in a 1,000-cubic-metre helium balloon – 2,000 miles (3,200km) – and in 1984 he became the first person to fly solo across the Atlantic Ocean in a helium balloon, traversing a route
from Maine to Italy.
"It was a confirmation for all of us when Joe expressed interest in Red Bull Stratos," says Art Thompson, the mission’s technical project director. "Joe is highly respected in the scientific and aerospace community for his accomplishments. In sharing his knowledge and support, he helps us to understand what he experienced and how to apply that knowledge to our new challenges.
"The skill set Joe brings to the mission is invaluable."
See more at redbullstratos.com
Comments
Add a comment