The Roswell Report: Case Closed

in innovations which have saved many lives. These included improved
safety belt restraint systems and design specifications for aircraft and
automobiles, aircraft ejection and emergency escape systems, refinement of
automobile airbag systems, and development of the modern anthropomorphic
test dummy.
As commander of the U.S. Air Force Aeromedical Field Laboratory
at Holloman AFB, N.M. and later the Aero Medical Laboratory at Wright-
Patterson AFB, Ohio, Stapp won support for the Air Force manned high
altitude balloons projects-MAN HIGH and ExcELSIOR. As a testament to his
thorough safety preparations, these and other extremely hazardous projects
administered by Stapp, did not result in a single debilitating injury to a test
subject. These projects helped pave the way for future flights of both high
altitude aircraft such as the X -15, and of spacecraft for the MERCURY, GEMINI,
and APOLLO programs. In fact, Stapp's expertise was called upon to assist in
the selection of the initial cadre of astronauts, the "MERCURY Seven."
He retired from the Air Force in 1970, but not before amassing a
collection of awards and honors. These included two awards of the Legion
of Merit for rocket sled experiments, the Cheney Award for 1954, and
membership in the National Aviation Hall of Fame.
In association with the Society of Automotive Engineers, Stapp
continues to participate in annual conferences in which industry experts
assemble to discuss vehicle safety issues. The conferences, now in their
40th year bear his name: the Stapp Car Crash Conferences.
In 1991, in recognition of a lifetime of unselfish dedication to
scientific research, Stapp was awarded the National Medal of Technology,
bestowed upon him at the White House by President George Bush.
He is married to the former Lillian Lanese, a former soloist with
the Ballet Theater of New York, and resides in Alamogordo, N.M. At 87
years old he continues to maintain a dizzying pace of travel and lectures.
It is not an exaggeration that virtually every person who has safely
operated, or ridden in, an automobile, aircraft, or spacecraft, has benefited
from the genius of Col. John Paul Stapp, and owes this brave scientist,
physician, and visionary, a great deal of thanks.
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32
Fig. 34. September 12, 1955
edition of Time featuring Col.
John P. Stapp and his rocket
sled experiments at Holloman
AFB,N.M.