Talk:Victor Prather

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Victor Prather vs. Joseph Kittinger

I stumbled upon this article via the article "Ballon (Aircraft)" and the records mentioned there. The jump described in this article here, contradicts the claims in the articles about Joseph Kittinger and Project Excelsior, as Prather's jump would be higher than Kittinger's. Google for " "Project RAM" parachute" and " "Project RAM" ballon" didn't give much inside.

Looks likr they didn't jump.[1] Changed article. Rmhermen 16:57, 23 May 2007 (UTC)

Death of Lt. Commander Victor A. Prather

There appear to be differing accounts of Lt. Cdr. Victor Prather's accidental death after the 1961 flight to 113,740 feet. I haven't found any other sources that say they ascended a ladder. The following description of the death of Victor Prather is based on Alfred H. Mikesell's (Astronomer on Malcom Ross's May 6-May 7 1958 flight into the Stratosphere) oral account related to me on January 25, 2008 of his personal communication with Cdr. Malcolm Ross soon after the 1961 flight.

The record-setting 1961 balloon flight was carefully planned out with a water landing and extraction of the balloonists to be made by boat. Ross and Prather were wearing the Navy's Mark IV full pressure suit, which was basically a space suit, throughout the flight. After the water landing, Victor Prather removed his pressure helmet. That was not a problem for the planned boat extraction. (Ross's account in the 1961 National Geographic article says that the balloonists opened their faceplates, which were fogging, when they returned to a breathable atmosphere, maybe 14,000 ft.) While the balloonists were waiting for the boat, a helicopter flight crew, without any orders to do so, lowered the lifting harness for a helicopter extraction. Cdr. Ross assumed that there had been a plan change and was able to successfully put the harness on. (Ross's account indicates that he too fell part way out of the harness, and presumably Prather was watching when that occurred.) After they transferred Ross to the aircraft carrier (USS Antietam (CV-36)), the helicopter crew returned to extract Victor Prather.

Presumably due to fatigue from the flight and the many hours of preparation for it, the weight of the flight suit, and insufficient rehearsal for the unplanned helicopter extraction, Victor Prather was unable to put the lifting harness on successfully, and only wrapped it around his arm. When the helicopter jerked upwards, Prather lost his grip on the harness and fell back into the water, where his flight suit flooded and he drowned. Catrachos (talk) 17:35, 27 January 2008 (UTC) (John Mikesell)

This version is correct. There was no ladder. In addition, there was no "jump". It was a balloon altitude record that stands to this day. Check out the National Geographic from June, 1961 for more information and photos. Thank you.20.137.18.50 (talk) 20:02, 31 March 2008 (UTC)Mrs. Victor A. Prather III

Thanks, Mrs Prather. Catrachos (talk) 17:06, 17 March 2015 (UTC)

Birth date for Victor A. Prather

There was a discrepancy for birth date (1923 vs 1926) on this page. According to the family geneology page[2], and other references I checked, the 1926 date appears to be correct, so I replaced the 1923 date in the first paragraph. Changes still need to be made on the date/year pages.Catrachos (talk) 19:19, 24 July 2008 (UTC)

The 1923 date is on the Tuft Univ Web pages. Other pages on the Web show 1926. If Prather attended Tufts in 41, as indicated, the 1923 date may then be correct. That would have made him 18 in 41, which is seems more likely for a college freshman than age 15.Catrachos (talk) 19:53, 24 July 2008 (UTC)

I've checked with Tufts, and they think the 1923 date is correct. I recommend we consistently site Victor Prather's birthdate as 1923 unless a more authorative source appears.192.94.94.105 (talk) 15:46, 30 July 2008 (UTC)

My fathers birth date was 6/4/1926. He started at Tufts in 1943; joining their V12 program (U.S. Navy) and stationed in Honolulu, Hawaii. After WW11, he returned to Tufts and completed their medical program.[Victor Prather 3rd] — Preceding unsigned comment added by 65.118.216.209 (talk) 16:55, 18 April 2014 (UTC)

Notes on Recent News Accounts

In news accounts this past year (2008), one of the balloonists trying to break the altitude record, comparing his endeavor with the 1961 flight, was quoted as saying that his team had carefully planned their trip to avoid drowning. It should be noted that an ascent like the 1961 trip is planned, choreographed, and practiced in exhaustive detail, and that the helicopter extraction that precipitated the accident in this case was not part of the plan. In an undertaking of this magnitude, encompassing a large team of people, no one can ever completely eliminate the possibility of human error or judgement, mechanical or equipment failures, natural forces, or just freak one in a million occurrences. Illustrated this past year when balloonists set out to break the altitude record. In one case the balloon escaped before the gondola left the ground, and in a second case the balloon envelope split during inflation. Neither of these occurrences were part of any plan. It attests to human courage and imagination that individuals like Victor Prather participate in these endeavors in spite of the undeniable risks. It gives the rest of us something to stir our own hopes and lends us courage for more ordinary challenges and disappointments of daily life.Catrachos (talk) 14:37, 25 July 2008 (UTC)

Inaccuracy in description of human exposure to vacuum - 15 December 2008

This article stated, in the section "The flight":
"At that altitude without a space suit, a person's blood would boil and death would be almost instantaneous."
That isn't true. The article Human adaptation to space offers a more accurate description:
"In the low pressure environment, gas exchange in the lungs would continue as normal but would result in the removal of all gases, including oxygen, from the bloodstream. After 9 to 12 seconds, the deoxygenated blood would reach the brain, and loss of consciousness would result. Death would gradually follow after two minutes of exposure - though the limits are uncertain."
As such, I have replaced the wording in this article with "At that altitude without a space suit, a person would lose consciousness in seconds." 132.198.253.21 (talk) 01:35, 16 December 2008 (UTC)

External links modified

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