Wing Walking - Air Walkers After World War II

Air Walkers After World War II

In the 1970s the stunt men and women still had some restrictions. They had to be attached to the upper wing center section.

In the mid 1970s, Ron David, a pilot and gifted narrator, became the director of the Flying Circus in Bealeton, Virginia. Under his stewardship he returned the air show back to its barnstorming roots and included a wing walking act. Since the Flying Circus aerodrome was a grass field, he asked the CAA to allow the wing walker out of cockpit during flight and return back into the cockpit, so the wing walker could be strapped in for take off and landing. His concern was taking off or landing with a wing-rider on the top wing and the chance of the plane flipping over if it hit a rut in the grass field. He was granted permission.

His first wing walker was Bill FitzSimons, a jumper with the Flying Circus. Bill left to continue his act around the country with pilot Ron Shelley. Jim Bradley, Bill's understudy, stepped in. Jim was a member of the Saint Michael's Angels there in the Flying Circus Aerodrome in Bealeton, Virginia. Jim tested and developed the fundamentals of their act.

When his Army duty called him, he chose Hank Henry to continue wing walking with Ron. Hank wing walked a year and Ron advertised for a new wing walker. Nour Jorgensen responded to the ad. Jim Bradley, Hank Henry, and Nour Jurgenson busted the boundaries of wing walking. The stunt work they pioneered is still state of the art and continues to inspire wing walkers around the world.

On November 14, 1981 in an event organized by Martin Caidin, 19 skydivers set an unofficial wing-walking world record by standing on the left wing of a Junkers JU-52 aircraft in flight.

On April 21, 2009, Tiger Brewer, an eight year old British boy, became the world's youngest Wing Walker after standing above the wings of his grandfather's plane 304.8 metres (1000 feet) above Gloucestershire, England at speeds of about 161 kilometres per hour (100 mph).