A variable pressure gas jet system for lifting and forming glass sheets including a controller (32) for providing an electrical signal corresponding to a preselected pressure to an electrical-to-pressure converter (34) which converts the received signal to a corresponding pressure. A remotely operated gas flow regulator (36) receives a small volume of the pressurized gas from the converter and transmits a large volume of gas at a corresponding pressure through the system to a series of gas jets (42) comprising an array of nozzles (24) which direct the pressurized gas onto the lower surface of the heated glass sheet to lift the glass sheet from a conveyor to the downwardly facing surface of an upper mold (22). The control preferably comprises a computer including a microprocessor and adequate memory for retaining a series of preselected pressures and preselected process intervals which together define a profile of varying pressures suitable to softly lift the heated glass sheet from the furnace conveyor (16) into contact with the upper mold (22), form the glass sheet on the mold (22), and subsequently provide support for the formed glass sheet on an open-center transfer ring to abate the effects of gravity which cause the formed glass sheet to sag from its desired shape during transport from the bending station (14) in the furnace (10).