Joe Kittinger, a retired United States Air Force colonel, cut his balloon teeth on the USAF's Manhigh balloon program in the 1950s. In 1960, he leaped from a balloon at 102,800 feet to set a world parachute record. He is a four-time winner of the Gordon Bennett Balloon Race and became the first man to balloon solo across the Atlantic in 1984.

His still unbuilt Windstar Balloon will be a compact, never-before-tried balloon within a balloon: a helium gas cell surrounded by pressurized air to act as an unlimited source of renewable ballast. During the day, air will be pumped into the surrounding chamber to counter the helium cell's tendency to rise. At night, air will be released from the 160-foot balloon. The aluminum capsule will be pressurized and powered with propane engines. "Getting the money and sponsorship has been the biggest challenge so far," says Kittinger, who has yet to name other members of his crew.