Above: Mike-Mike and Spirit of 76 on their way. Carter Twedt – Carson City, Nevada. made many commercial flights. Nevada Skydivers Carter, an American Airlines pilot, with his crew chief, showed a special interest in Mike-Mike. Carter claimed, Pat Arthur, lifted off in a yellow Raven AX-6 with a red “The whole club wanted to jump so there have been at band at the equator sporting a string of white stars. A least 50 jumps from the old balloon.” He and Peggy sold banner, also promoting Rich Ford, dangled from the Mike-Mike years ago, but it was still being inflated on basket. This was the balloon that was used in Walt special occasions. Disney’s “High Flying Lowe” movie about Professor Thaddeus Lowe, the Civil War aeronaut who conducted Karl Stefan – Palestine, Texas. aerial reconnaissance for the Union Army. N4MM or Karl was a graduate of the Naval Academy, Class of Mike-Mike as Carter called the balloon (M-M for Mickey 1940, and a WWII veteran, having retired in 1960 after Mouse), was made up to look like a gas balloon for the 20 years in naval aviation. He made his first gas balloon 1972 Disney movie. flight in 1956 and his first hot air balloon flight in 1961. As for the 1972 race, “We brought our entire crew and After teaching Chauncey Dunn how to fly balloons in the envelope in two Cessnas, but we had to ship the Colorado in the early 1970s (Karl was working at the gondola,” said Carter. They placed sixth overall. Carter National Center for Atmospheric Research in Boulder at and Pat made a high-wind landing on the Sandia Pueblo the time), they flipped a coin to see who would attempt Reservation and ended up hauling the balloon out piece a new altitude record. Karl won and reached 31,000 by piece. feet before his oxygen mask froze. Three days later, Carter retired from American Airlines in 1994 but Chauncey, with a heater in his oxygen mask, set a new continued to fly – not jets, not balloons, but paragliders. AX-8 record by reaching 33,000 feet. His wife Peggy was also a licensed balloon pilot and Karl received the coveted Montgolfier Diplome for the OFFICIAL PROGRAM 59