For the record

For the record

23/02/2010

Einar Enevoldson, who has joined the Red Bull Stratos project as Mission Control’s ‘capcom support’, knows what it’s like to be a world-beater. Over a span of 48 years, he set eight world records, six of which still stand.

In his career as a research pilot serving the United States Air Force, NASA and private enterprises, Einar took powered aircraft to unprecedented altitudes and acceleration, and, alongside Steve Fossett, he completed the first ever glider flight into the stratosphere. As a man who has flown more than 300 aircraft, tested just about every kind of pressure suit and worked with aerospace agencies around the world, Einar has not only helped to advance aerospace science – he has first-hand perspective on the depth of daring and resources Felix Baumgartner will need to complete his mission, an unprecedented endeavour that will see him ascend to the edge of space and then freefall at supersonic speeds towards the earth.

Born in the US city of Seattle, Einar received a BSc in mechanical engineering and an MSc in aeronautical engineering from the University of Wyoming. He was a jet fighter pilot in the USAF (earning the Distinguished Flying Cross) and attended the Empire Test Pilot’s School in the UK as an ‘exchange officer’ with the Royal Air Force, subsequently serving as a test pilot for the Hunter, Lightning and Javelin fighter aircraft. Einar then signed on as a civilian research pilot for NASA’s Dryden Flight Research Center, where he achieved breakthroughs in stall and spin-resistance tests and was a key participant in research on projects including experimental wings, propulsion and digital computer flight control systems, twice earning NASA’s Exceptional Service Medal.

'It’s a great personal challenge for Felix, but I can see that he will be up to it' – Einar Enevoldson

After retiring from NASA, Einar accepted a chief test pilot position at Germany’s Grob Aerospace, where he not only set an absolute altitude record for turboprop aircraft, but also broke the altitude record for propeller-driven aircraft. It was during his time in Germany that Einar became fascinated with developing the meteorological theory that enabled him (aged 73) and Steve Fossett to take a wind-powered glider to a stratospheric altitude of 50,671ft (15,444m) in the famed Perlan Project. Today, Einar contributes to the next phase of the Perlan Project, in which a sailplane will soar without power to an altitude of at least 90,000ft (27.4km) – higher than any powered manned aircraft has ever sustained flight.

With Red Bull Stratos, Einar is collaborating on what may be another aerospace milestone. “I was sceptical at first,” he admits, “but after meeting Felix and seeing the commitment of the team, I was convinced that it could be possible to safely do the jump.” Unlike many previous high-altitude jump projects, Red Bull Stratos plans a series of incremental increases in test altitude to give Felix and the mission team experience to prepare for the record attempt. Einar’s role focuses on flight operations, including planning ground tests in preparation for the flight tests, then planning the flight tests working up to mission launch and, finally, analysing the results. On the day of the launch, he’ll also serve as ‘Capcom II’, supporting the legendary Joe Kittinger as Mission Control’s back-up for capsule communications.

Einar notes that ‘the big unknown’ will be the human ability to control rotation at high altitude, but that this is something that Baumgartner will be fit to cope with during the Red Bull Stratos jump, as long as he has the correct guidance.

“I also help to ensure that Felix is properly trained and that his equipment is right,” says Einar. “It’s a great technical challenge and a great personal challenge for Felix, but I can see that he will be up to it.”