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USASOC Military Free Fall Parachute Badge

HALO/HAHO
Military free-fall form of insertion.

Purpose
Delivering personnel, equipment, or supplies.

HALO
High-Altitude/Low-Opening

HAHO
High-Altitude/High-Opening

Origins
Attributed to USAF
US Army Special Forces
SEAL Team SIX
and USAF Col Joe Kittinger.

2eme REP Legionnaires HALO jump from a C-160.

U.S. Air Force Pararescuemen jump from a HC-130P/N for a HALO drop of only half the height of a "typical HALO/HAHO insertion".

HALO/HAHO are acronyms that describe methods of delivering personnel, equipment, and supplies from a transport aircraft at a high altitude via free-fall parachute insertion. HALO (High Altitude-Low Opening) and HAHO (High Altitude-High Opening) are also known as Military Free Fall (MFF).

In the HALO technique, the parachutist opens his parachute at a low altitude after free-falling for a period of time, while in the HAHO technique, the parachutist opens his parachute at a high altitude just a few seconds after jumping from the aircraft. HALO techniques date back to 1960 when the U.S. Air Force was conducting experiments that followed earlier work by Colonel John Stapp in the late 1940s^[1] through early 1950s on survivability factors for high-flying pilots needing to eject at high altitudes. In recent years, the HALO technique has been practiced by civilians as a form of skydiving. HALO is used for delivering equipment, supplies, or personnel, while HAHO is generally used only for personnel.

In typical HALO/HAHO insertions, the troops are dispatched from altitudes between 15,000 feet (4,600 m) and 35,000 feet (11,000 m).^[2]

HALO[link]

The origins of the HALO technique date back to 1960 when the U.S. Air Force was conducting experiments that followed earlier work by Colonel John Stapp in the late 1940s through early 1950s on survivability factors for high-flying pilots needing to eject at high altitudes.^[1] Stapp, a research biophysicist and medical doctor, used himself as a human guinea pig in rocket sled tests to study the effects of very high g-forces. Stapp also resolved many of the issues involved in high altitude flight in his earliest work for the Air Force, and subjected himself to exposure to altitudes of 45,000 feet (14,000 m). Subsequently, he helped develop pressure suits and ejection seats, which have been used in jets ever since. As part of the experiments, on August 16, 1960, Colonel Joseph Kittinger performed the first high altitude jump at an altitude of 19.5 miles (31.4 km) above the Earth's surface. However, the technique was used for combat for the first time during the Vietnam War in Laos by members of MACV-SOG. SEAL Team Six of the United States Navy expanded the HALO technique to include delivery of boats and other large items in conjunction with parachutists.

The technique is used to airdrop supplies, equipment, or personnel at high altitudes when aircraft can fly above surface-to-air missile (SAM) engagement levels through enemy skies without posing a threat to the transport or load.

For military cargo airdrops, the rigged load is cut free and rolls out of the plane as a result of aircraft deck angle (AOA). The load then proceeds to fall under canopy to a designated drop zone.

In a typical HALO exercise, the parachutist will jump from the aircraft, free-fall for a period of time at terminal velocity, and open his parachute at a low altitude. The combination of high downward speed, minimal metal and forward air-speed serves to defeat radar, enabling a stealthy insertion.

HAHO[link]

The HAHO technique is used to airdrop personnel at high altitudes when aircraft are unable to fly above enemy skies without posing a threat to the jumpers. In addition, HAHO parachute jumps are employed in the covert insertion of military personnel (generally special operations forces) into enemy territory, in circumstances where the covert nature of an operation may be compromised by the loud noise of parachutes opening at low altitude.

In a typical HAHO exercise, the jumper will jump from the aircraft and deploy the parachute at a high altitude, 10–15 seconds after the jump (typically at 27,000 feet (8,200 m) or so). The jumper will use a compass or GPS device for guidance while flying for 30 or more miles. The jumper must use way points and terrain features to navigate to his desired landing zone, and correct his course to account for changes in wind speed and direction. If deploying as a team, the team will form up in a stack while airborne with their parachutes. Usually, the jumper in the lowest position will set the travel course and act as a guide for the other team members.

Health risks[link]

This type of parachuting technique can be dangerous. At high altitudes of the Earth's atmosphere (greater than 22,000 feet [6,700 m]), the partial pressure of oxygen (required for human respiration) is low. Lack of pressure can lead to hypoxia. Also, rapid ascent in the jump aircraft without all nitrogen flushed from the bloodstream can lead to decompression sickness (also known as caisson disease or usually known as the bends).

A typical HALO exercise will require a pre-breathing period (30–45 minutes) prior to jump where the jumper breathes 100% oxygen in order to flush nitrogen from their bloodstream. Also, a HALO jumper will employ an oxygen bottle during the jump. Danger can come from medical conditions affecting the jumper. For example, cigarette smoking, alcohol and drug use (including histamine antagonists, sedatives, and analgesics), anemia, carbon monoxide, fatigue and anxiety can all lead to a jumper being more susceptible to hypoxia. In addition, problems with the oxygen bottle and during the changeover from the pre-breather to the oxygen bottle can result in the return of nitrogen to the jumper's bloodstream and, therefore, an increased likelihood of decompression sickness. Theoretically, a single breath of atmospheric air may elevate the jumpers arterial nitrogen level to dangerous levels. A jumper suffering from hypoxia may lose consciousness and therefore be unable to open his parachute. A jumper suffering from decompression sickness may die or become permanently disabled from nitrogen bubbles in the bloodstream, which causes inflammation of joints.

Another risk is from the low ambient temperatures prevalent at higher altitudes. At an altitude of 35,000 feet, the jumper faces temperatures of 50 degrees below zero (Fahrenheit), and can experience frostbite. However, HALO jumpers generally wear polypropylene knit undergarments and other warm clothing to prevent this.

As with all skydiving, participants run the risk of serious injury or death due to canopy malfunction.

Typical equipment[link]

This unreferenced section requires citations to ensure verifiability.

In a typical HALO exercise, a parachutist will jump with:

• an altimeter
• an automatic [parachute] activation device (AAD).
• a parachute
• a knife
• a helmet
• a pair of gloves
• a pair of military free-fall boots
• oxygen available on board the aircraft
• bailout oxygen
• a 50–100+ pound combat pack with fighting and sustenance gear

Example of use[link]

• Free fall parachute insertions were utilized during Operation Iraqi Freedom, as a means of bypassing enemy early warning systems.^[3][4]
• The jump was successfully orchestrated by James Bond in Tomorrow Never Dies.
• A HALO jump is performed by Naked Snake in the opening scene of Metal Gear Solid 3 (heralded as "the world's first HALO jump" in the story).
• In the beginning part of the film Air Force One a team of US Special Ops soldiers are seen performing a HAHO to infiltrate the palace of a dictator by landing on the roof.
• In the 2011 video game Battlefield 3 mission, "Kaffarov", a HALO jump is performed by Russian GRU operatives to land near the arms dealer Kaffarov's compound without detection (however, this fails when the weapons case they drop is discovered.)

List of HALO/HAHO capable units[link]

Gallery[link]

• A Bald Altitude Airman HALO Altitude Chamber Langley AFB.jpg

  Tech. Sgt. Don Blackwell prepares to take a class "up" in the altitude chamber at Langley AFB, Virginia.

• 

  U.S. Army paratroopers jump from a C-130 flying 25,000 feet over the Arizona desert.

See also[link]

• Billy Waugh

Notes[link]

References[link]

• Black, Mike. HALO jump over Yuma Proving Ground, AZ. US Marine Corps. United States of America.
• Divine, Mark (2004). Navy SEALs Air Operations - Free Fall: HALO/HAHO (used with permission). US Navy SEAL 1989 to present. Founder of NavySEALs.com.
• McKenna, Pat (July 1997). A Bad Altitude. Airman. US Air Force. United States of America.
• McManners, Hugh (2003), Ultimate Special Forces, pub Dorling Kindersley http://doi.contentdirections.com/mr/dk.jsp?doi=10.1221/0789499738
• US Army Infantry School (November 1, 1995). Lesson 3: Airlift Requests and Personnel Used in Airborne. Fundamentals of Airborne Operations, Edition B. US Army Infantry School. US Army. United States of America.
• US DOD (June 5, 2003). US DOD Dictionary of Military Terms: Joint Acronyms and Abbreviations. US Department of Defense. United States of America.
• http://www.airpower.maxwell.af.mil/airchronicles/aureview/1986/nov-dec/boyd.html
• http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/ops/airborne-halo-haho.htm

External links[link]

• Photo of Billy Waugh's Combat HALO Badge, etc.
• The short film STAFF FILM REPORT 66-12A (1966) is available for free download at the Internet Archive [more]

Look up HALO or halo in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

Halo may refer to:

• Halo (religious iconography), a glow or ring of light around a head or person in art
• HALO jump, a High Altitude-Low Opening parachute jump

Game franchise and spin-offs[link]

• Halo (series), a video game franchise by Bungie and Microsoft Game Studios
  • Halo (megastructure), the megastructure that is the center of the game's canon.
  • Halo: Combat Evolved, the first game in the series, released in 2001
    • Halo Original Soundtrack, the soundtrack for the first game in the series
  • Halo 2, the second game in the series, released in 2004
    • Halo 2 Original Soundtrack, the soundtrack for the second game in the series split into two volumes; Volume one and two released at different dates
  • Halo 3, the third game in the series, released in 2007.
    • Halo 3 Original Soundtrack, the soundtrack for the third game in the series
  • Halo Wars, a real-time strategy spin-off created by Ensemble Studios, released in 2009.
  • Halo 3: ODST, a game set during the events of Halo 2 and Halo 3, released in 2009
  • Halo: Reach, a prequel to the first game, released in 2010
    • Halo: Reach Original Soundtrack, the soundtrack for the above game in the series
  • Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary, the remake of the first game, released in November, 2011
  • Halo 4, the recently announced first installment to the second trilogy, to be released in November 2012
  • Halo 5, recently announced at E3 2011 (Part of the Reclaimer Trilogy), release date is unknown.
  • Halo 6, recently announced at E3 2011 (Part of the Reclaimer Trilogy), release date is unknown.
  • Halo Legends, a series of short animated films set in the Halo franchise's universe

Natural science[link]

• Halo (optical phenomenon), an atmospheric illusion produced by ice crystals
• Galactic halo
• Halo nucleus
• Halo orbit
• Halo- (disambiguation), a chemical prefix

Music[link]

Performers[link]

• Halo (metal band), an Australian drone/sludge metal band
• Halo (Christian rock band), an American group
• Halo (UK band), a rock group

Songs[link]

• "Halo" (Beyoncé Knowles song)
• "Halo" (Machine Head song)
• "Halo" (Red Flag song)
• "Halo" (Soil song)
• "Halo" (Texas song)
• "Halo", a song by Bloc Party on the album Intimacy
• "Halo", a song by Depeche Mode on the album Violator
• "Halo", a song by Foo Fighters on the album One by One
• "Halo", a song by Bethany Joy Galeotti on the album Friends with Benefits: Music from the Television Series One Tree Hill, Volume 2
• "Halo", a song by Porcupine Tree on the album Deadwing
• "Halo", a song by the Pussycat Dolls on the album Doll Domination
• "Halo", a song by Tinchy Stryder on the album Catch 22
• "Halo", a song by Takida on the album Bury the Lies
• "Haloes", a song by The Tubes on the album The Tubes
• "Halo", a song by Endless Shame on the album Generation Blind

Other uses in music[link]

• Halo (album), by Current 93
• Halo numbers, a numbering system used by industrial rock band Nine Inch Nails to organize official releases
• Halo Records, a record label

Films[link]

• Halo (1996 film), a 1996 Indian film
• Halo (2007 cancelled film), a cancelled film version of the Halo video game series

Other uses[link]

• Halo (bar)
• Halo (horse)
• Halo (medicine), a cervical brace
• Halo, West Virginia, United States
• Halo effect, a type of cognitive bias
• Halo Project (Project Halo), computer science "digital Aristotle"
• HALO Trust, an organization to remove war debris
• Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, a baseball team, nicknamed "the Halos"
• Halo, a move used in the dance b-boying
• Halo antenna, a common omni-directional antenna.
• Halo, a certain type of automobile headlamp

This disambiguation page lists articles associated with the same title. If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article.

Bear Grylls
Born	Edward Michael Grylls (1974-06-07) 7 June 1974 (age 38) United Kingdom
Residence	A barge moored by Battersea Bridge on the River Thames, England[1] An island on Llŷn Peninsula, Abersoch, North Wales[2]
Occupation	Chief Scout Adventurer Explorer Author Motivational speaker[3] Television presenter
Spouse	Shara Cannings Knight[4]
Children	Jesse, Marmaduke,[5] and Huckleberry[6]
Parents	Sir Michael Grylls Lady Grylls (née Sarah Ford)
Website
BearGrylls.com

Edward Michael "Bear" Grylls (born 7 June 1974) is an English adventurer, writer and television presenter. He is best known for his television series Man vs. Wild, known as Born Survivor^[7] in the United Kingdom. In July 2009, Grylls was appointed the youngest ever Chief Scout at the age of 35.

Personal life[link]

Grylls grew up in Donaghadee, Northern Ireland until the age of 4 when his family moved to Bembridge on the Isle of Wight.^[8][9] He is the son of the late Conservative party politician Sir Michael Grylls and Lady Sarah Grylls.^[10] Lady Grylls was the daughter of Patricia Ford,^[11] briefly an Ulster Unionist Party MP, and cricketer and businessman Neville Ford. Grylls has one sibling, an elder sister, Lara Fawcett, a cardio-tennis coach, who gave him the nickname 'Bear' when he was a week old.^[12]

Grylls was educated at Eaton House, Ludgrove School, Eton College, where he helped start its first mountaineering club,^[13] and Birkbeck, University of London,^[14] where he graduated with a degree, obtained part-time, in Hispanic studies in 2002. From an early age, he learned to climb and sail from his father, who was a member of the prestigious Royal Yacht Squadron. As a teenager, he learned to skydive and earned a second dan black belt in Shotokan karate. He practices yoga and ninjutsu. At age eight he became a Cub Scout.^[15] He speaks English, Spanish, and French.^[16] Grylls is a Christian, describing his faith as the "backbone" in his life.^[17]

Although Grylls was christened 'Edward' he has legally changed his forename to 'Bear'.^[18] Grylls married Shara Grylls (née Cannings Knight) in 2000.^[4][11] They have three sons: Jesse, Marmaduke,^[19] and Huckleberry.^[6]

Military service[link]

After leaving school, Grylls considered joining the Indian Army and hiked in the Himalayan mountains of Sikkim.^[20] Grylls joined the British Army and served in the part-time United Kingdom Special Forces Reserve, with 21 Regiment Special Air Service, 21 SAS(R) for 3 years until 1996.

In 1996, he suffered a freefall parachuting accident in Zambia. His canopy ripped at 4,900 metres (16,000 ft), partially opening, causing him to fall and land on his parachute pack on his back, which partially crushed three vertebrae. Grylls later said: "I should have cut the main parachute and gone to the reserve but thought there was time to resolve the problem".^[21] According to his surgeon, Grylls came "within a whisker" of being paralysed for life and at first it was questionable whether he would ever walk again. Grylls spent the next 12 months in and out of military rehabilitation at Headley Court^[21] before being discharged and directing his efforts into trying to get well enough to fulfil his childhood dream of climbing Mount Everest.

In 2004, Grylls was awarded the honorary rank of Lieutenant Commander in the Royal Naval Reserve for services to charity and human endeavour.^[22]

Everest[link]

On 16 May 1998, Grylls achieved his childhood dream (an ambition since his father gave him a picture of Everest when he was eight) and entered the Guinness Book of Records, as the youngest Briton, at 23, to summit Mount Everest^[23], just eighteen months after injuring his back. (James Allen, an Australian-British climber who ascended Everest in 1995 with an Australian team, but who has dual citizenship, reached the summit at age 22.^[24][25] The feat has since been surpassed by Jake Meyer and, at age 19, by Rob Gauntlett.)

Other expeditions[link]

Circumnavigation of the UK[link]

In 2000, Grylls, led the first team to circumnavigate the UK on a personal watercraft or jet ski, taking about 30 days, to raise money for the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI). He also rowed naked for 22 miles in a homemade bathtub along the Thames to raise funds for a friend who lost his legs in a climbing accident.^[26]

Crossing the North Atlantic[link]

Three years later, he led a team of five, including his childhood friend, SAS colleague, and Mount Everest climbing partner Mick Crosthwaite, on the first unassisted crossing of the north Atlantic Arctic Ocean, in an open rigid inflatable boat^[27]. Suffering weeks of frozen spray and icebergs, battling force 8 gale winds, hypothermia, and storms in an eleven-metre-long boat through some of the most treacherous stretches of water in the world including the Labrador Sea, the Denmark Strait, and the stretch made famous by The Perfect Storm, Grylls and his team were just barely able to finish the journey from Halifax, Nova Scotia to John o' Groats, Scotland.

Paramotoring over Angel Falls[link]

In 2005, Grylls led the first team ever to attempt to paramotor over the remote jungle plateau of the Angel Falls in Venezuela, the world's highest waterfall. The team was attempting to reach the highest, most remote tepuis.

Dinner party at altitude[link]

In 2005, alongside the balloonist and mountaineer David Hempleman-Adams and Lieutenant Commander Alan Veal, leader of the Royal Navy Freefall Parachute Display Team, Grylls created a world record for the highest open-air formal dinner party, which they did under a hot-air balloon at 7,600 metres (25,000 ft), dressed in full mess dress and oxygen masks. To train for the event, he made over 200 parachute jumps. This was in aid of The Duke of Edinburgh's Award and The Prince's Trust.

Paramotoring over the Himalayas[link]

In 2007, Grylls claimed to have broken a new world record by flying a Parajet paramotor over the Himalayas, higher than Mount Everest.^[28] Grylls took off from 4,400 metres (14,500 ft), 8 miles south of the mountain. Grylls reported looking down on the summit during his ascent and coping with temperatures of −60 °C (−76 °F). He endured dangerously low oxygen levels and eventually reached 9,000 metres (29,500 ft), almost 3,000 metres (10,000 ft) higher than the previous record of 6,102 metres (20,019 ft). The feat was filmed for Discovery Channel worldwide as well as Channel 4 in the UK.^[29]

While Grylls initially planned to cross over Everest itself, the permit was only to fly to the south of Everest, and he did not traverse Everest out of risk of violating Chinese airspace.^[30]

Journey Antarctica 2008[link]

In 2008, Bear lead a team of four to climb one of the most remote unclimbed peaks in the world in Antarctica. This was raising funds for Global Angels kids charity and awareness for the potential of alternative energies. During this mission the team also aimed to explore the coast of Antarctica by inflatable boat and jetski, part powered by bioethanol, and then to travel across some of the vast ice desert by wind-powered kite-ski and electric powered paramotor. However, the expedition was cut short after Grylls suffered a broken shoulder while kite skiing across a stretch of ice. Travelling at speeds up to 50 km/h (30 mph), a ski caught on the ice, launching him in the air and breaking his shoulder when he came down. He had to be medically evacuated.^[31]

Longest indoor freefall[link]

Grylls, along with the double amputee Al Hodgson and the Scotsman Freddy MacDonald, set a Guinness world record in 2008 for the longest continuous indoor freefall.^[32] The previous record was 1 hr 36 mins by a US team. Grylls, Hodgson, and MacDonald, using a vertical wind tunnel in Milton Keynes, broke the record by a few seconds. The attempt was in support of the charity Global Angels.

Northwest Passage expedition[link]

In August 2010 Grylls lead a team of five to take an ice-breaking rigid-inflatable boat (RIB) through 2,500 miles (4,000 km) of the ice strewn Northwest Passage. The expedition intended to raise awareness of the effects of global warming and to raise money for children's charity Global Angels.^[33]

Media[link]

Grylls entered television work with an appearance in an advertisement for Sure deodorant, featuring his ascent of Mount Everest. Bear was also used by the UK Ministry of Defence to head the Army's anti-drugs TV campaign, and featured in the first ever major advertising campaign for the world-renowned department store Harrods. Grylls has been a guest on television programs, including Friday Night with Jonathan Ross, The Oprah Winfrey Show, Late Night with Conan O'Brien, The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, Attack of the Show, The Late Show with David Letterman, Jimmy Kimmel Live! and Harry Hill's TV Burp. Grylls recorded two advertisements for Post's Trail Mix Crunch Cereal, which aired in the US from January 2009. He also appeared as a distinguished instructor in Dos Equis' Most Interesting Academy in a webisode named "Survival in the Modern Era". He appeared in a five-part web series that demonstrates urban survival techniques and features Grylls going from bush to bash. He also has marketed the Alpha Course, a course on the basics of the Christian faith. Warner Bros. had asked Grylls to appear in its remake of the film Clash of the Titans^[34]

Grylls is a best-selling author. Grylls' first book, titled Facing Up, went into the UK top 10 best-seller list, and was launched in the USA entitled The Kid Who Climbed Everest. About his expedition and achievements climbing to the summit of Mount Everest. Grylls' second book Facing the Frozen Ocean was shortlisted for the William Hill Sports Book of the Year Award 2004. His third book was written to accompany the series Born Survivor: Bear Grylls. (Released in America in April 2008 to the Man vs. Wild Discovery television show) It features survival skills learned from some of the world's most hostile places. This book reached the Sunday Times Top 10 best-seller list. He also wrote an extreme guide to outdoor pursuits, titled Bear Grylls Outdoor Adventures. In 2011 Bear released his autobiography Mud, Sweat and Tears. and it is still currently the best-selling book in Australia and the United Kingdom.^{[citation needed]}

He has a series of children's adventure survival books titled: Mission Survival: Gold of the Gods, Mission Survival: Way of the Wolf, Mission Survival: Sands of the Scorpion and Mission Survival: Tracks of the Tiger.

[edit] Escape to the Legion

Grylls filmed a four-part TV show in 2005, called Escape to the Legion, which followed Grylls and eleven other "recruits" as they took part in a shortened re-creation of the French Foreign Legion's basic desert training in the Sahara. The show was broadcast in the UK on Channel 4,^[35] and in the USA on the Military Channel.^[36] In 2008, it was repeated in the UK on the History Channel.^[37]

[edit] Born Survivor / Man vs. Wild

Grylls hosts a series titled Born Survivor: Bear Grylls for the British Channel 4 and broadcast as Man vs. Wild in Australia, New Zealand, Canada and the U.S.A., and as Ultimate Survival on the Discovery Channel in Europe, Asia, and Africa. The series features Grylls dropped into inhospitable places, showing viewers how to survive. Man vs. Wild debuted in 2006 and went on to become the number one cable show in all of America and now reaches a global audience of over 1.2 billion viewers.^[19] The second season premièred in the US on 15 June 2007, the third in November 2007, and the fourth in May 2008.

The show has featured stunts including Grylls climbing cliffs, parachuting from helicopters, balloons, and planes, paragliding, ice climbing, running through a forest fire, wading rapids, eating snakes, wrapping his urine-soaked t-shirt around his head to help stave off the desert heat, drinking urine saved in a rattlesnake skin, drinking fecal liquid from elephant dung, eating deer droppings, wrestling alligators, field dressing a camel carcass and drinking water from it, eating various "creepy crawlies" [insects], utilising the corpse of a sheep as a sleeping bag and flotation device, free climbing waterfalls and using a bird guano/water enema for hydration.^[38][39] Grylls also regales the viewer with tales of adventurers stranded or killed in the wilderness.

In some early episodes, Man vs. Wild / Born Survivor was criticised by some sources for misleading viewers about some of the situations in which Grylls finds himself. Discovery and Channel 4 television subsequently pledged production and editing transparency and clarification related to the criticism.

In March 2012, Discovery Channel terminated its productions with Grylls due to contract disputes.^[40]

[edit] Worst Case Scenario

Grylls' latest project is titled Worst Case Scenario and airs on Discovery in the USA. It is based on the popular books of the same name.^[41]

Chief Scout[link]

On 17 May 2009, The Scout Association announced Grylls would be appointed Chief Scout following the end of Peter Duncan's five year term in July 2009.^[42] He was officially made Chief Scout at Gilwell 24 on 11 July 2009 in a handover event featuring Peter Duncan in front of a crowd of over 3,000 Explorer Scouts. He is the tenth person to hold the position and the youngest Chief Scout since the role was created for Robert Baden-Powell in 1920.^[43][44]

Charities[link]

Many of Grylls' expeditions and stunts have raised money for charitable organisations.^{[citation needed]} Grylls is an ambassador for The Prince's Trust, an organisation which provides training, financial, and practical support to young people in the United Kingdom.^[19] He is also vice president for The JoLt Trust, a small charity that takes disabled, disadvantaged, abused or neglected young people on challenging month-long expeditions.

Global Angels, a UK charity which seeks to aid children around the world, were the beneficiaries of his 2007 accomplishment of taking a powered para-glider higher than Mount Everest. Grylls's held the highest ever dinner party at 7,600 metres (25,000 ft) in aid of The Duke of Edinburgh's Award Scheme, and launched the 50th anniversary of the Awards. His successfully circumnavigating Britain on jet skis raised money for the Royal National Lifeboat Institution. Grylls' Everest climb was in aid of SSAFA Forces Help, a British-based charitable organisation set up to help former, and serving members of the British Armed Forces, and their families and dependents. His 2003 Arctic expedition detailed in the book Facing the Frozen Ocean was in aid of The Prince's Trust. His 2005 attempt to para-motor over the Angel Falls was in aid of the charity Hope and Homes for Children.^[45] In August 2010, Grylls continued his fund-raising work for Global Angels by undertaking an expedition through the Northwest Passage in a rigid inflatable boat. Many of his expeditions also support environmental causes such as his Antarctica expedition and his circumnavigation of Britain which tested a pioneering new fuel made from rubbish.

In 2011, Grylls was in New Zealand during the February 2011 Christchurch earthquake. Following the incident, he appeared on New Zealand advertisements encouraging people to donate money to help rebuild the city.

Other work[link]

Outside of TV, Grylls works as a motivational speaker, giving speeches worldwide to corporations, churches, schools, and other organisations.^[46] He is also a spokesperson for and owner of a Juice Plus franchise. Grylls has his own outdoor survival clothing range produced by British manufacturer Craghoppers as well as a knife manufactured by Gerber.

See also[link]

• Ranulph Fiennes, British adventurer and a hero of Grylls' growing up^[47]
• Bruce Parry, British adventurer and TV presenter
• Les Hiddins, Australian survival expert and TV presenter
• Les Stroud, Canadian survival expert and TV presenter
• Ray Mears, English survival expert and TV presenter

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Bear Grylls

• BearGrylls.com official website
• Bear Grylls on Twitter
• ScoutBase.org (UK) "Meet the Chiefs"

Photo by Jalylah Burrell

Eric Roberson (born September 25, 1976) is an American R&B and soul singer-songwriter from Rahway, New Jersey, United States. He is sometimes referred to simply as Erro. Roberson started his journey as a high school actor, landing prominent roles in "The Tap dance Kid", Grease", and "Anything Goes". In 1990, he won "Mr. Black teen Universe, winning a scholarship to Howard University in Washington, DC. His first single, "The Moon", was released through Warner Bros. records in 1994. Roberson recorded an album for that label, which remained unreleased. He subsequently returned to Howard University to complete his studies in Musical Theatre. After performing in a number of musicals and plays, he landed a songwriting deal through the EMI label, and went on to collaborate with Philadelphia-based artists such as Jill Scott, Musiq Soulchild, and most extensively, DJ Jazzy Jeff. As a member of Jeff's A Touch Of Jazz production company, Roberson made contributions to Jeff's debut album, The Magnificent in 2002. He continues songwriting work as well as releasing his own material through his Blue Erro Soul imprint. He also appeared on DJ Spinna's Intergalactic Soul LP in 2006.

Studio albums[link]

Live albums[link]

Selected discography[link]

• 112 - Room 112 (1998) "Funny Feelings" (writer)
• Wild Wild West (1999) Tra-Knox "Lucky Day" (writer), Kel Spencer featuring Richie Sambora "I'm Wanted" (background vocals), Neutral "Chocolate Form" (writer)
• Jill Scott - Who Is Jill Scott? Words and Sounds Vol. 1 (2000) "Getting In The Way" (background vocals)
• Musiq Soulchild - Aijuswanaseing (2000) "Mary Go Round" (writer, vocal arrangements)
• Case - Open Letter (2001) "Driving" (writer, background vocals), "Love Of My Life" (writer)
• Vivian Green - A Love Story (2002) "What Is Love?" (writer, background vocals), "Emotional Rollercoaster" (writer, background vocals), "Ain't Nothing But Love" (writer, background vocals)
• Musiq Soulchild - Juslisen (2002) "Previouscats" (writer, background vocals)
• Dwele - Subject (2003) "Hold On" (writer, background vocals, vocal production)
• Carl Thomas - Let's Talk About It (2004) "Rebound" (writer, producer)

Compilations[link]

• "Couldn't Hear Me" appears on the compilation Gilles Peterson Worldwide Exclusives 3 (2004) Talking Loud.

Awards/Nominations[link]

• BET Awards
  • 2007: Nominee, BET J Award

• Grammy Awards
  • 2010: Nominee, Best Urban/Alternative Performance ("A Tale of Two")
  • 2011: Nominee, Best Urban/Alternative Performance ("Still")

• Soul Train Award
  • 2009: Nominee, Centric/Underground Approved Artist

See also[link]

• DJ Jazzy Jeff
• DJ Spinna
• Jill Scott
• Musiq Soulchild
• Neo Soul
• Dwele

External links[link]

• Official site
• Eric Roberson UK Vibe Interview by Michael "The Dood" Edwards 2011
• Eric Roberson interview by Pete Lewis, 'Blues & Soul' September 2011
• Eric Roberson interview by Pete Lewis, 'Blues & Soul' September 2009
• Eric Roberson audio interview on HoneySoul.com
• Eric Roberson interview by Pete Lewis, 'Blues & Soul' June 2008
• Eric Roberson: ThaFormula.Com - Interview
• Interview
• Eric Roberson On MySpace

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