33rd Annual Crystal Eagle Dinner honoring
Alan Eustace

November 14, 2015

The Aero Club of Northern California invites you to the annual Crystal Eagle Award Dinner honoring Alan Eustace, who holds the world record for the highest-altitude free fall jump.

The event will be at 6:15 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 14, at the Hiller Aviation Museum, 601 Skyway Road at San Carlos Airport. Dinner will be served at 7:30 p.m.

The Aero Club also will present National Aeronautic Association Certificate awards to three individuals for their significant contributions to aviation. Scholarships will be awarded to several students enrolled in Bay Area college and university aviation programs. Dinner ticket prices just cover the cost of the event, so we rely upon contributions and Silent Auction bids to fund the scholarships.

Eustace is being honored with the 33^rd prestigious Crystal Eagle for his altitude free fall jump, which the NAA placed on their list of Most Memorable Records for 2014. At the time of his jump, he was serving as Senior Vice President of Knowledge at Google. He earlier served as their Senior Vice President of Engineering. A computer scientist by training, he previously worked for Digital, Compaq, and then HP in their Western Research Laboratory.  

In 2011, Eustace began working with Paragon Space Development Corporation to create a life-support system that would let him breathe pure oxygen in a pressure suit, designed and built by ILC Dover. On October 24, 2014, Eustace made a jump from the stratosphere, breaking Felix Baumgartner's 2012 world record. The launch-point was from an abandoned runway in Roswell, New Mexico, where he began his balloon-powered ascent. He reached a reported maximum altitude of 135,908 feet (25.7 miles), but the final number submitted to the World Air Sports Federation was 135,889.108 ft (25.736573 miles). His descent lasted 15 minutes and stretched nearly 26 miles, reaching peak speeds exceeding 821.45 miles per hour, setting new world records for the highest free fall jump, and total free fall distance of 123,334 ft.

The Crystal Eagle Award was first presented by the Aero Club in 1983 to legendary aviator Gen. Jimmy Doolittle. Among past recipients are Gen. Chuck Yeager, Stanley Hiller Jr., Jim Nissen,  George Cooper, Jeana Yeager, James S. Ricklefs, Darryl Greenamyer, Clay Lacy, Paul Poberezny, Wayne Handley, Eileen Collins, Sean D. Tucker, Steve Fossett, Brian Shul, C.E. “Bud” Anderson, Julie Clark and Rod Machado.

Aero Club Membership is $40/year and dinner tickets, including museum admission, are $80 each. Reservations are due by November 7, after which a $10 per person late fee applies. Reservations are required; no tickets will be sold at the door. Come join us and help make it a night to remember!
Sincerely,

Max Trescott
President
Aero Club of Northern California

Join the Aero Club Now!Register - Awards Dinner