Joseph Kittinger

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Joseph W. Kittinger II
Born July 27, 1928 (1928-07-27) (age 79)

Colonel Joseph Kittinger
Allegiance United States of America
Service/branch United States Air Force
Years of service 1950-1978
Rank Colonel
Battles/wars Vietnam War
Awards Silver Star (2)
Legion of Merit (2)
Distinguished Flying Cross (6)
Bronze Star (3)
Purple Heart (2)
Meritorious Service Medal
Air Medal (24)
Prisoner of War Medal
Kittinger next to the Excelsior gondola
Kittinger next to the Excelsior gondola

Joseph William Kittinger II (born July 27, 1928) is a former pilot and career military officer in the United States Air Force. He is most famous for his participation in Project Manhigh and Project Excelsior and also, as being the first man to make a solo crossing of the Atlantic Ocean in a gas balloon.

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[edit] Early life and military career

Born in Tampa, Florida (U.S.), he was educated at the Bolles School in Jacksonville, Florida, and the University of Florida. After racing speedboats as a teenager and later completing his aviation cadet training, he joined the USAF in March of 1950. He was assigned to the 86th Fighter-Bomber Wing based at Ramstein Air Base in West Germany.

In 1954 he was transferred to Holloman AFB in New Mexico and the Air Force Missile Development Center (AFMDC). Kittinger flew the observation plane which monitored Colonel John Paul Stapp's rocket sled run of 632 mph in 1955. Kittinger was impressed by the dedication of Stapp (a pioneer in space medicine). Stapp, in turn, was impressed with Kittinger's skillful jet piloting, later recommending him for space aviation work. Stapp was to foster the high altitude tests which would lead to Kittinger's record leap. In 1957 as part of Man High he set an interim balloon altitude record of 96,760 feet (29,500 m) in Man High I. He was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross (D.F.C.)

[edit] Project Excelsior

Main article: Project Excelsior

Captain Kittinger was then assigned to the Aerospace Medical Research Laboratories at Wright-Patterson AFB in Dayton, Ohio. For Project Excelsior (meaning "ever upward", a name given to the project by Colonel Stapp), as part of research into high altitude bailout, he made a series of three parachute jumps wearing a pressurized suit, from a helium balloon with an open gondola.

The first, from 76,400 feet (23,287 m) in November, 1959 was a near tragedy when an equipment malfunction caused him to lose consciousness, but the automatic parachute saved him (he went into a flat spin at a rotational velocity of 120 rpm; the g-force at his extremities was calculated to be over 22 times that of gravity, setting another record). Three weeks later he jumped again from 74,700 feet (22,769 m). For that return jump Kittinger was awarded the Leo Stevens parachute medal.

On August 16, 1960 he made the final jump from the Excelsior III at 102,800 feet (31,330 m). Towing a small drogue chute for stabilization, he fell for 14 minutes and 36 seconds reaching a maximum speed of 614 mph (988 km/h or 274 m/s) before opening his parachute at 18,000 feet (5,500 m). Pressurization for his right glove malfunctioned during the ascent, and his right hand swelled to twice its normal size.[1] He set records for highest balloon ascent, highest parachute jump, longest drogue-fall (14 min), and fastest speed by a human through the atmosphere[2].

The jumps were made in a "rocking-chair" position, descending on his back, rather than the usual arch familiar to skydivers, because he was wearing a 60-lb "kit" on his behind and his pressure suit naturally formed that shape when inflated, a shape appropriate for sitting in an airplane cockpit.

For the series of jumps, Kittinger was decorated with an oak leaf cluster to his D.F.C. and awarded the Harmon Trophy by President Dwight Eisenhower.

[edit] Later work

Kittinger's record-breaking skydive
Kittinger's record-breaking skydive

Back at Holloman AFB he also took part in Project Stargazer on December 13–14, 1962. He and William C. White, an astronomer, took a balloon of equipment to a height of 82,200 feet (25,055 m) and spent over eighteen hours at that height performing observations.

Kittinger later served three combat tours during the Vietnam War, flying a total of 483 missions, the first two tours as an aircraft commander in A-26 Invaders. On a voluntary third tour in 1971-72, he commanded the F-4 Phantom 555th Tactical Fighter Squadron and then became vice commander of the 432nd Tactical Reconnaissance Wing. On March 1, 1972, he shot down a MIG-21 in air-to-air combat, and was later downed himself on May 11, 1972, just before the end of his tour. He spent 11 months as a prisoner of war in the "Hanoi Hilton" prison. Kittinger was senior officer among the newer POWs (those captured after 1969) and in John D. Sherwood's Fast Movers is described as having been in serious conflict with his fellow prisoners over his leadership.

He retired as a colonel in 1978 and went to work for Martin Marietta. Still interested in ballooning, he participated in the Gordon Bennett Cup in ballooning in 1989 (ranked 3rd) and 1994 (ranked 12th) and completed the first solo Atlantic crossing in the 106,000 cubic foot (3,000 m³) Rosie O'Grady's Balloon of Peace from September 14 to September 18, 1984.[3]

[edit] Currently

In 1997, Kittinger was inducted into the National Aviation Hall of Fame in Dayton, Ohio.[4] Kittinger lives in the Orlando, Florida area and is Vice President of Flight Operations for Rosie O'Grady's Flying Circus. He is still active in the aviation community as a consultant and touring barnstormer.

On January 23, 2007 the Civil Air Patrol (CAP), the United States Air Force Auxiliary, honored Kittinger by renaming the TX-352 Squadron for him. Texas Governor Rick Perry cited Kittinger's work as did the Texas Senate with a special resolution presented during the dedication ceremony attended by Kittinger and his wife Sherry. The Col. Joseph W. Kittinger Phantom Senior Squadron of CAP's Texas Wing is based at Austin-Bergstrom International Airport.

The Excelsior capsule is on display at the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force in Dayton, Ohio. An exhibit about his balloon jump opened at the Smithsonian Air & Space Museum on April 6, 2008.

[edit] References

  1. ^ 20-Year Journey for 15-Minute Fall - NYTimes.com
  2. ^ Joseph W. Kittinger - USAF Museum Gathering of Eagles
  3. ^ National Geographic, Feb 1985
  4. ^ NAHF: Joseph Kittinger, Jr.

[edit] References

  • Joseph Kittinger. The Long, Lonely Leap. (1961 autobiography)
  • Gregory P. Kennedy. Touching Space: the story of Project Manhigh. (Schiffer, 2007)
  • The Pre-Astronauts: Manned Ballooning on the Threshold of Space. (Naval Institute, 1995)

[edit] External links

[edit] Articles about Kittinger

[edit] Technical information

[edit] Videos