  lawrence richard walters, nicknamed "lawnchair larry" or the "lawn chair pilot", (april 19, 1949 â october 6, 1993) was an american truck driver who took flight on july 2, 1982, in a homemade airship. dubbed inspiration i, the "flying machine" consisted of an ordinary patio chair with 45 helium-filled weather balloons attached to it. walters rose to an altitude of over  and floated from his point of origin in san pedro, california, into controlled airspace near los angeles international airport. his flight was widely reported. ==balloon flight== ===origin of his plan=== walters had always dreamt of flying, but was unable to become a pilot in the united states air force because of his poor eyesight. he first thought of using weather balloons to fly at age 13 and 14, after seeing them hanging from the ceiling of a military surplus store. twenty years later he decided to try it. his intention was to attach a few helium-filled weather balloons to his lawn chair, cut the anchor, and then float above his backyard at a height of about  for several hours. he planned to use a pellet gun to burst balloons to float gently to the ground. ===preparation and launch=== in mid-1982, walters and his girlfriend, carol van deusen, purchased 45 eight-foot weather balloons and obtained helium tanks from california toy time balloons. they used a forged requisition from his employer, filmfair studios, saying the balloons were for a television commercial. walters attached the balloons to his lawn chair, filled them with helium, put on a parachute, and strapped himself into the chair in the backyard of a home at 1633 w. 7th st. in san pedro. he took his pellet gun, a cb radio, sandwiches, cold beer and a camera. when his friends cut the cord that tied his lawn chair to his jeep, walters's lawn chair rose rapidly to a height of about . at first, he did not dare shoot any balloons, fearing that he might unbalance the load and cause himself to spill out. he slowly drifted over long beach and crossed the primary approach corridor of long beach airport. he was in contact with [[radio emergency associated communication teams|reac
1949_births 1993_deaths American_balloonists Drivers_who_committed_suicide People_from_Los_Angeles,_California Suicides_by_firearm_in_California Truck_drivers