1975
Born

1976 (1)
Midgar plate construction began

1992 (17)
The Wutai War begins
Cid enlists

1997 (22)
Starts working as an engineer for Shinra

1999 (24)
The Highwind airship is completed

2000 (25)
The Wutai War ends

2001 (26)
The Space Exploration Program, headed by Palmer, is created

2002 (27)
Nibelheim incident occurs

2003 (28)
No. 26 fails

2007 (32)
Events of FFVII

2009 (34)
Events of Advent Children

2010 (35)
Events of Dirge of Cerberus

Midgar Slum Kid
Cid Highwind was born in Midgar. His ancestors had lived in the villages that were to become the slums of Midgar, their names eventually lost to the history of time. Shinra preached a pretty tale of a life of ease and wealth for all that worked with them and most were eager to listen to their honeyed words. The construction of the Plate was a monumental task that required hundreds of people. While Cid's parents watched him as often as they could, there was only so much time in a day and he often spent it alone.

The young boy showed an early interest in machines and their inner workings, something that would stay with him for life. His father worked the trains that moved construction materials and Cid would sometimes accompany him. More a hands-on learner, he would pull apart old engines and gadgets that he salvaged, even going so far as to repair, and sometimes improve, the items that he found.

Everything changed when his father suffered an injury on the job. With their prospects dwindling, they left the growing city of Midgar to stay with family out in the country.

This was long before the surrounding area had died from pollution, it was even before the marshes and the large serpent that would stalk its prey through movement, but Cid had only ever known the city up until this point. It was dirty and full of noise, even then, and between the ever-growing Plate and the pollution that stained the skies, young Cid had never had a proper chance to see the sky.

Until he left Midgar.

Coming out from under the smog and the newly formed plate, Cid would never forget his first sight of a clear sky. At night, bright stars appeared one by one, which were invisible before due to all the lights. In the day, fluffy clouds drifted through a sea of blue where before they had mixed with the smog. 

They crossed the grasslands and traversed a limestone cave before they came out to the open land that would become the home of his teenage years.

Growing Pains
The villages outside Junon specialized in handling chocobos and cultivating the land. Everything they grew, raised, or hunted was used to further the community. Not many were pleased with Cid's inclinations for mechanics, it was too much like Shinra, but that didn't keep him from his passions.

As machine-minded as Cid was, he still enjoyed the country life he was now a part of. He helped defend the small village from wild monsters, learning how to use a spear in the process, and spent time taking care of chocobos.

Drawn to the nearby fishing town of Junon, Cid began making the trek there by chocobo and spent time there more and more as he grew. He attended school in the recently built elevated airfield, his mind a sponge for any information he could get his hands on, and eventually set his sights on engineering.

Cid saved and saved in order to take the classes he wanted, even despite the villager's disdain since the school was connected to ShinRa, but Cid didn't think they could be all that bad. They were innovators! Dreamers! Like him! However, before he could think of reaching his dreams, war broke out with Wutai.

This opened an unexpected path for Cid: He could join the Shinra army, serve, and then be allowed to go to school for free. Dreams firmly in sight, he jumped at the chance.

The Wutai war would wage for eight years, and Cid had no idea what he was getting into. His technical expertise landed him the role of an engineer creating the robots and firearms that got shipped to the frontlines. A people-person by nature, he naturally made friends with several of the other engineers, and took on a leadership role.

When there was a need for more pilots, Cid put himself forward for training and took to it like a bird. Shinra was becoming suitably impressed with his drive, varied set of skills, and how he led the soldiers.

Part way through the war, Cid was selected to move into airship engineering. It's what he had been gunning for and now was his chance to prove himself. There were other aeronautical engineers that ShinRa hired, but Cid quickly surpassed them. It was his design and work on the Highwind aircraft that earned him Chief Aeronautical Engineer of Shinra. The Wutai War soon ended and that was when the push for space began.

The Next Frontier
Testing had to come first, and Cid was a huge force behind what was happening. Early tests happened in Midgar until an incident landed a rocket in the slums. Then they built a base out near the Nibel Mts., where they crafted more prototypes that would lead to the creation of the ShinRa No. 26. Cid's dreams were finally going to be realized...

Until they weren't. One of the scientists was trapped in the engine room on launch and Cid cut the engine just before she would be burned alive. The rocket failed and his dreams along with it. The Space Program was cut shortly afterwards. The team that had strived to see their dreams become a reality built a town around the leaning rocket, thus giving the town its name: Rocket Town. Cid settled there and waited for the day he could fly again. In the meantime, he never gave up on keeping the rocket in good condition, at least as much as he could, because each day it leans a little more.