93-year-old wing walker breaks world record
Published on 30 August 2013 11:30 AM
A 93-year-old widower has entered the record books once again for becoming the world's oldest wing walker.
Tom Lackey, who first took to the skies strapped to a plane's wing over a decade ago, broke his own record as he landed safely at City of Derry Airport after a 1 hour, 21 minute journey across the Irish Sea on 29 August.
The former builder from the West Midlands braced the cold as he hit heights of 1,000ft on top of a 1943 Boeing Stearman biplane.
Departing from Castle Kennedy, near Stranraer, in Scotland, he touched down in Derry at about 11am.
'It was rather refreshing'
'I am glad to be down. It was rather refreshing - very, very cold and very, very noisy,' he said. 'It was a very powerful aircraft and the noise was quite terrific because of the engine and the wind.
'It was scary at times, but it's over with now, and I have broken my own record. I have been doing it for a long time, and the pilot was quite prepared to bring me down at any stage, but thankfully he didn't have to.'
Mr Lackey, from Shirley near Solihull, completed his first wing walk 13 years ago after the death of his wife, Isobel, who had served in the Royal Air Force.
He has since gone on to complete numerous wing walks in the name of charity, raising over £1 million for good causes.
Double record breaker
In 2005, at the age of 85, he entered the Guinness Book of World Records as the oldest person on top of an aircraft that looped the loop.
Wing walking is not everyone's cup of tea, although Mr Lackey claims he rather likes the adrenaline rush and sees it as a challenge.
He admitted, however, that this latest stunt was his most challenging to date and revealed he always carries a photograph of his late wife with him.
'She comes with me every time I go up in the air,' added the unlikely daredevil. 'I mainly think of her and what she would think of me. I do think she would have been very proud. I have been doing all these stunts to keep her memory alive. She was a wonderful person.'
Copyright Press Association 2013