Who previously held the record of skydiving before Felix?

Answer 1

Colonel Joseph William Kittinger II (born July 27, 1928 in Tampa, Florida, United States) is a former USAF Command Pilot, career military officer and retired Colonel in the United States Air Force. He is most famous for his participation in Project Manhigh and Project Excelsior in 1960, setting the record longest skydive from a height greater than 31 kilometres (19 mi).[1] He was also the first man to make a solo crossing of the Atlantic Ocean in a gas balloon.