LANCASTER, Calif. - A man considered an aviation legend will grace the stage at the LA County Air Show this weekend. Even though US Air Force Colonel Joe Kittinger won’t be in the air, he’ll join a panel talking about his many accomplishments, which include jumping from space and setting a world record for the highest skydive.
“I jumped from 103,000 feet. I free fell for 4 minutes and 36 seconds,” described Kittinger.
He accomplished his record-breaking freefall in 1960 for the U.S. Air Force.
“It was done before the space program started,” said Kittinger. “It was done to get information we needed for the space program.”
His jump made a lasting impact in space and aviation.
“The small drogue chute that we developed back in 1959 and 1960 is still being used today. Every ejected seat in the world uses a smaller drogue chute,” said Kittinger.
Kittinger’s free fall record lasted for 52 years. He plans to talk about his experience in a “Heroes and Legends” Aviation History Panel at this weekend’s air show. Kittinger also details his jump in his autobiography “Come Up and Get Me.”
“I chronicle my 29 years in the Air Force and my other adventures,” said Kittinger.
The aviator served as a fighter pilot during the Vietnam War. He was later shot down and spent 11 months as a prison of war in a Vietnamese prison. He plans to talk about his war experience at the air show.
“The first message about Vietnam is how we conducted the war, why we did it, what we felt about it," he said.
Kittenger was also the first man to make a solo crossing of the Atlantic Ocean in a gas balloon. His love for all things aviation continues to this day; he loves watching a new generation take to the skies.
“I’ve been flying since I was 20 years old and I just enjoy air shows and this is quite an air show they have here,” said Kittinger.