Aviation pioneer and retired Air Force hero Joe Kittinger has died at the age of 94.
Kittinger, who was born in Tampa in 1928 and raised in Orlando, set a record for the longest skydive in 1960 when he jumped from a hot-air balloon at a height greater than 19 miles as a U.S. Air Force captain involved in Project Excelsior. He ended up on the cover of Life magazine.
His participation in Project ManHigh and Project Excelsior tested the ability of a pilot to survive an ejection from high-flying aircraft, key to the United States’ first manned spaceflight efforts. In all, he made five high-altitude jumps.
He also was the first man to make a solo crossing of the Atlantic Ocean in a helium balloon. (SpectrumNews13)
Kittinger, who was born in Tampa in 1928 and raised in Orlando, set a record for the longest skydive in 1960 when he jumped from a hot-air balloon at a height greater than 19 miles as a U.S. Air Force captain involved in Project Excelsior. He ended up on the cover of Life magazine.
His participation in Project ManHigh and Project Excelsior tested the ability of a pilot to survive an ejection from high-flying aircraft, key to the United States’ first manned spaceflight efforts. In all, he made five high-altitude jumps.
He also was the first man to make a solo crossing of the Atlantic Ocean in a helium balloon. (SpectrumNews13)
