You Are Cleared For Immediate Departure

Hello loyal Aerospace History Blog readers!  As of Monday, 28 May 2012, our blog will be relocated to a new site.  We don’t want you to miss a single exciting entry.  So, the next time you visit us here, you will automatically be vectored to our new blog location. Thank you for your patronage of the Aerospace […]

The Phabulous Phantom

Thirty-six years ago this week, production unit No. 5,000 of the incomparable USAF/McDonnell F-4 Phantom II fighter-bomber was delivered in a public ceremony held at Lambert-St. Louis International Airport.  This occasion (Wednesday, 24 May 1978) also  marked the 20th anniversary of the type’s maiden flight (Saturday, 24 May 1958).  Rhino, Lead Sled, Flying Brick, Flying […]

Aviation’s Holy Grail

Forty-nine years ago today, the USAF/Northrop X-21A Laminar Flow Control (LFC) experimental aircraft exhibited a significant reduction in skin friction drag.  This achievement marked the first time in aviation history that the LFC principle was successfully demonstrated in flight.  Perhaps aviation’s greatest holy grail is the pursuit of technology that allows a laminar boundary layer […]

Dawn of the Super Sabre

Fifty-nine years ago this month, the USAF/North American YF-100A Super Sabre air-superiority fighter made its maiden flight with North American test pilot George S. Welch at the controls.  During this initial test flight, the Super Sabre exceeded the speed of sound.  The North American F-100 Super Sabre was the successor to the fabled F-86 Sabre […]

Penultimate Lunar Landing

Forty-years ago this month, the United States successfully conducted the next-to-last Apollo lunar landing mission with the flight of Apollo 16.  The lunar landing occurred in the densely-cratered Descartes Highlands region located near the Descartes crater.  On Sunday, 16 April 1972, Commander John W. Young, Command Module Pilot Thomas K. Mattingly II, and Lunar Module […]

Project PRIME Finale

Forty-five years ago this month, the United States Air Force successfully flew and recovered the third and final Project PRIME Flight Test Vehicle (FTV-3).  PRIME stood for Precision Recovery Including Maneuvering Entry.  The ability to generate aerodynamic lift allows a reentry vehicle to maneuver along the endoatmospheric portion of its entry flight path.   The main […]

Neil’s Cross-Country Flight

Fifty-years ago this week, future Apollo 11 Astronaut Neil A. Armstrong piloted the fifty-first and longest mission of the X-15 Program.  The research flight was highlighted by Armstrong having to make a 180-degree turn over Los Angeles to recover the X-15 back at Edwards Air Force Base following a 45-mile overshoot of the intended landing […]

Stratofortress Maiden Flight

Sixty-years ago this week, the USAF/Boeing YB-52 Stratofortress (S/N 49-231) all-jet strategic bomber took to the air on its maiden flight.  The crew for this historic event consisted of Boeing’s Alvin M. “Tex” Johnston (command pilot) and USAF Lt Col Guy M. Townsend (co-pilot).  The B-52 was designed by the Boeing Company for the United […]

Early Bird Satellite Launch

Forty-seven years ago this week, the first International Telecommunications Satellite (Intelsat I) was launched into a geosynchronous orbit by a Thrust-Augmented Delta (TAD) launch vehicle.  Popularly known as Early Bird, the satellite holds the distinction of being history’s first commercial communications orbital platform.  It was also the first satellite to provide direct and quasi-instantaneous communication […]

Saturn I SA-4 Mission

Forty-nine years ago this week, the United States successfully conducted the fourth Saturn I test flight designated as Saturn-Apollo No. 4 (SA-4).  Launched from LC-34 at Cape Canaveral, Florida on Thursday, 28 March 1963, SA-4  reached an apogee of 70 nm, attained a maximum speed of 3,670 mph and flew 216 nm downrange during the […]

Yogi Goes Ballistic

Fifty-years ago this week, a supersonic flight test of the B-58A Hustler’s crew escape system was successfully conducted with a black bear named Yogi as the test subject.  Ejection took place with the test aircraft maintaining a speed of 850 mph at 35,000 feet.  The USAF/Convair B-58A Hustler was the world’s first operational supersonic strategic […]

Delta M-6 Orbits Explorer 43

Forty-one years ago this month, the first long-tank thrust-augmented Delta rocket with six Castor-2 strap-on boosters was launched from LC-17A at Cape Canaveral, Florida.  Known as Delta M-6, the thrust-augmented launch vehicle was capable of placing 1,000 lbs in geosynchronous transfer orbit (GTO) or about 2,850 lbs in low earth orbit (LEO).  Three of the […]

Apollo Lunar Module Debut

Forty-three years ago this month, the Apollo Lunar Module (LM) flew in space for the first time during the Apollo 9 earth-orbital mission.  This technological achievement was critical to the success of the first lunar landing mission which occurred a little over 4 months later.  The Apollo Lunar Module (LM) was the world’s first true […]

SAC Fires First Hound Dog

Fifty-two years ago this week, the Strategic Air Command (SAC) fired its first USAF/North American AGM-28 Hound Dog cruise missile.  A USAF/Boeing B-52G Stratofortress from the 4135th Strategic Wing at Eglin AFB, Florida served as the air-launch platform.  The AGM-28 Hound Dog was a turbojet-powered cruise missile designed to penetate enemy air space and deliver […]

Ranger 8 Scores a Bullseye

Forty-seven years ago today, NASA’s Ranger 8 spacecraft successfully completed a mission to obtain high-resolution photographs of the lunar surface.  The flight was the penultimate mission in the Ranger Program, the goal of which was to help scientists better understand the topography of potential Apollo lunar landing sites.  Ranger 8’s mission began with launch from […]

The Mighty SeaMaster

Fifty-three years ago this week, the U.S. Navy’s first production Martin P6M-2 SeaMaster flyingboat took-off from Chesapeake Bay on its maiden flight.  Martin chief test pilot George A. Rodney was at the controls of the 4-man, swept-wing naval bomber as it took to the skies on Tuesday, 17 February 1959.  Featuring a fuselage length of […]

TIROS – The View From Orbit

Fifty-years ago this week, the NASA TIROS IV meteorological satellite was successfully orbited by a United States Air Force Thor-Delta launch vehicle.  Launch took place from LC-17A at Cape Canaveral, FL on Thursday, 08 February 1962.  The TIROS (Television Infra Red Observation Satellite) Program marked the first use of satellite technology to provide near-continuous photographic […]

100th X-15 Flight

Forty-eight years ago this month, USAF Major Robert A. Rushworth flew the 100th flight test of the X-15 Program.  Piloting his 18th mission in the manned hypersonic aircraft, Rushworth achieved a maximum speed of 3,618 mph (Mach 5.34 ) in X-15 Ship No. 1 (S/N 56-6670).  The date was Tuesday, 28 January 1964.  Peak altitude […]

A Fire in the Cockpit

Forty-five years ago this week (Friday, 27 January 1967), the Apollo 1 prime crew perished as fire swept through their Apollo Block I Command Module (CM) during a ground test at Cape Canaveral, Florida.  The crew of Command Pilot Vigil I. “Gus” Grissom, Senior Pilot Edward H. White II and Pilot Roger B. Chaffee had […]

We Own the Night

Twenty-one years ago this week (Thursday, 17 January 1991), USAF/Lockheed F-117A Nighthawk aircraft were employed against more than 31 percent of Iraqi targets during the initial 24 hours of Operation Desert Storm.  This high utilization rate came despite the fact that the Nighthawk comprised a mere 2.5 percent of all Coalition aircraft used in the […]

SRAM Production Go-Ahead

Forty-one years ago this week (Tuesday, 12 January 1971), the USAF/Boeing Short Range Attack Missile (SRAM) was ordered into production.  Known as the AGM-69, the nuclear-armed weapon was designed for both internal and external carriage by the USAF/Boeing B-52 Stratofortress.  SRAM would eventually see service with the F-111A Aardvark and the B-1B Lancer as well.  […]

F-111A Flexes Its Wings

Forty-seven years ago this week, the USAF/General Dynamics F-111A Aardvark tactical strike aircraft successfully swept its variable-geometry wings for the first time in flight.   Company test pilots Dick Johnson and Val Prahl flew this test on what was the second flight of Ship No 1. (S/N 63-9766).  Flying out of Carswell Air Force Base in […]

Home For Christmas

Twenty-five years ago this month, the storied Rutan Model 76 Voyager aircraft successfully completed history’s first non-stop, non-refueled flight around the world.  The crew of Dick Rutan and Jeana Yeager departed Edwards Air Force on Sunday, 14 December 1986 and returned 216 hours, 3 minutes and 44 seconds later on Tuesday, 23 December 1986.  The […]

Debut of the Area Rule

Fifty-seven years ago today, the No. 1 USAF/Convair YF-102A (S/N 53-1787) aircraft flew for the first time on a flight that originated from Lindbergh Field near San Diego, California.  A redesigned variant of the USAF/Convair YF-102, the delta wing aircraft incorporated a new drag-reducing design feature known as Whitecomb’s Area Rule.  Applied for the first […]

Project SCORE

Fifty-three years ago this month, the USAF/RCA Project SCORE spacecraft became the world’s first communications satellite.  Within 24 hours of being orbited by an Atlas B intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM), the SCORE (Signal Communications Orbit Relay Equipment) payload broadcast a Christmas message to the world recorded by U. S. President Dwight D. Eisenhower.  The president’s […]

Birth of a Legend

Sixty-four years ago this month, the USAF/Boeing XB-47 Stratojet took to the air for the first time.  The legendary Stratojet would go on to become the first all-turbojet strategic bomber to enter operational service with the United States Air Force.

Farewell to a War Horse

Fifty-seven years ago this month, the USAF/Boeing B-29 Superfortress strategic bomber was officially retired from the active inventory of the United States Air Force.  The famed World War II-era aircraft had a service life of less than a dozen years.

Bell X-2 First Powered Flight

Fifty-six years ago this month, the USAF/Bell X-2 Starbuster experimental flight research aircraft made its initial powered flight from Edwards Air Force Base, California.   Legendary test pilot USAF Lt. Col. Frank K. “Pete” Everest was at the controls of the rocket-powered, swept-wing X-aircraft.

Atmospheric Entry Milestone

Fifty-four years ago this month, the first ablative nose cone to survive entry into the Earth’s atmosphere was formally presented to the American public.  President Dwight D. Eisenhower displayed the recovered nose cone during a national television broadcast from the Oval Office. An object making a hypersonic entry into the the Earth’s atmosphere from space […]

Dark November

Forty-four years ago this month, the No. 3 USAF/North American X-15 research aircraft broke-up during a steep dive from an apogee of 266,000 feet.  The pilot, USAF Major Michael J. Adams, died when his aircraft was torn apart by aerodynamic forces as it passed through 65,000 feet at more than 2,500 mph. The hypersonic X-15 […]

SNARK Goes The Distance

Fifty-four years ago today, the USAF/Northrop SNARK intercontinental cruise missile successfully flew its maximum range mission of 5,000 statute miles for the first time.  SNARK would go on to become the only strategic cruise missile ever operationally deployed by the United States. The SM-62A SNARK was designed to deliver nuclear ordnance at strategic ranges.  The […]

The Whale’s Maiden Flight

Fifty-nine years ago this month, the USN/Douglas XA3D-1 Skywarrior prototype strategic bomber made its initial test flight at Edwards Air Force Base, California.  Legendary Douglas test pilot George R. Jansen was at the controls of the swept-wing, turbojet-powered, carrier-based aircraft. The USN/Douglas A3D Skywarrior was the product of late 1940’s Navy studies calling for a […]

B-1A Bomber Rollout

Thirty-seven years ago this month, the first USAF/Rockwell B-1A multi-role strategic bomber was rolled-out at the contractor’s USAF Plant 42 facility in Palmdale, California.  The swing-wing, supersonic aircraft was intended to replace the venerable USAF/Boeing B-52 Stratofortress. The USAF/Rockwell B-1A Lancer was the product of 1960’s-era Air Force studies calling for a supersonic-capable, low-level penetration […]

The Thud’s Maiden Flight

Fifty-six years ago this month, the USAF/Republic YF-105A Thunderchief took to the air for the first time from Edwards Air Force Base.  With Republic test pilot Russell M. Roth at the controls, the fabled Thud exceeded the speed of sound during its maiden flight. The USAF/Republic F-105 Thunderchief was a member of the fabled Century […]

Bold Orion’s Grand Finale

Fifty-two years ago this month, the USAF Bold Orion air-launched ballistic missile performed a successful intercept of the Explorer VI satellite.  This event marked the first time in history that a endoatmospherically-launched missile intercepted a target vehicle in space. Bold Orion was a 1950’s-era air-launched ballistic missile (ALBM) prototype developed by Martin Aircraft for the […]

Prelude to Orbit

Fifty-five years ago this month, the first Jupiter-C launch vehicle flew a suborbital mission in which it attained a maximum velocity of 16,000 mph.  The successful flight test was a significant step in the development of what would ultimately result in the United States’ first satellite launcher. The Jupiter-C was a derivative of the Army’s […]

XF-92A Dart First Flight

Sixty-three years ago this week, the USAF/Convair XF-92A Dart made its first official flight from Muroc Army Airfield in California.  Convair test pilot Ellis D. “Sam” Shannon was at the controls of the experimental delta-winged aircraft. The XF-92A Dart holds the distinction of being the first delta-winged, turbojet-powered aircraft in the United States.  It was […]

First Successful Live Payload Rocket Flight

Sixty-years ago this month, a live biological payload consisting of a primate and a colony of mice was lofted to an altitude of 236,000 feet by a two-stage Aerobee X-8 sounding rocket.  The mission marked the first recorded instance where a mamallian payload survived the rigors of high altitude rocket flight. The post-World War II […]

Atlas Goes Operational

Fifty-two years ago this week, the United States Air Force successfully conducted an Initial Operational Capability Demonstration (IOC DEMO) of the Atlas D Intercontinental Ballistic Missile (ICBM).  The Atlas Missile System was pronounced operational following the successful launch from Vandenberg Air Force Base, California. Named for the superhuman strongman of Greek mythology, Atlas was the United States’ […]

Gas Station in the Sky

Fifty-five years ago this week, the USAF/Boeing KC-135A Stratotanker took to the skies for the first time.  The jet-powered aircraft would go on to become the most famous military tanker in the history of aviation. The KC-135A Stratotanker was a derivative of the famous Boeing Model 367-80.  The type was the only jet-powered aircraft designed […]

X-1A Record Altitude Mission

Fifty-seven years ago this month, USAF Major Arthur W. “Kit” Murray set a new world altitude record of 90,440 feet in the rocket-powered Bell X-1A.  In doing so, Murray reported that he could detect the curvature of the Earth from the apex of his trajectory. The USAF/Bell X-1A was designed to explore flight beyond Mach […]

Manhigh II

Fifty-four years ago this week, USAF Major David G. Simons, MD successfully  completed the Manhigh II high-altitude balloon mission.  Simons’ epic flight lasted 32 hours and established an altitude record of 101,516 feet. Project Manhigh was a United States Air Force biomedical research program that investigated the human factors of spaceflight by taking men into […]

First Mid-Air RV Retrieval

Fifty-one years ago this month, an United States Air Force C-119 Flying Boxcar aircraft successfully performed the first mid-air retrieval of a reentry body as it was returning from space.  The recovered vehicle was named Discoverer XIV. Corona was a covert reconnaissance program operated by the United States government from June of 1959 to May […]

Sea Dart Exceeds Mach 1

Fifty-seven years ago this week, the USN/Convair YF2Y-1 Sea Dart became the first and only seaplane ever to exceed the speed of sound.  Convair test pilot Charles E. Richbourg was at the controls of the experimental sea-based fighter. In 1948, the United States was looking to develop a sea-based supersonic fighter as a means projecting […]

Two-Stager Hits Mach 9

Sixty-one years ago this month, the United States Army’s Bumper-WAC No. 7 two-stage rocket reached a maximum speed of 8,213 ft/sec (Mach 9).  This concluding flight of the Bumper Program was flown from the Long-Range Proving Ground (LRPG) in Florida. The Bumper Program was a United States Army effort to reach flight altitudes and velocities […]

Mercury-Redstone No. 4

Fifty-years ago this week, Mercury Seven Astronaut Vigil I. “Gus” Grissom, Jr. became the second American to go into space.  Grissom’s suborbital mission was flown aboard a Mercury space capsule that he named Liberty Bell 7. The United States first manned space mission was flown on Friday, 05 May 1961.  On that day, NASA Astronaut […]

Thunderscreech First Flight

Fifty-six years ago this month, the USAF/Republic XF-84H experimental turboprop fighter took to the air for the first time.  The test hop originated from and recovered at Edwards Air Force Base, California. The turbojet-powered XF-84H was a variant of Republic Aviation’s F-84 Thunderstreak.  An Allison XT40-A-1 turboprop engine, rated at 5,850 hp, served as the […]

Home For The Fourth

Twenty-nine years ago today, the Space Shuttle Columbia landed at Edwards Air Force Base to successfully conclude the fourth orbital mission of the Space Transportation System.  Columbia’s return to earth added a special touch to the celebration of America’s 207th birthday. STS-4 was NASA’s fourth Space Shuttle mission in the first fourteen months of Shuttle […]

Nike Hercules Deployment

Fifty-three years ago this week, the United States Army Nike Hercules air defense missile system was first deployed in the continental United States.  The second-generation surface-to-air missile was designed to intercept and destroy hostile ballistic missiles. The Nike Program was a United States Army project to develop a missile capable of defending high priority military […]

Murphy Rides Again

Ten years ago this month, the first NASA X-43A airframe-integrated scramjet flight research vehicle was launched from a B-52 carrier aircraft high over the Pacific Ocean.  The inaugural mission of the HYPER-X Flight Project came to an abrupt end when the launch vehicle departed controlled flight while passing through Mach 1. In 1996, NASA initiated […]

YB-49 Flying Wing Mishap

Sixty-three years ago this month, the USAF/Northrop YB-49 Flying Wing came apart during a test flight that originated at Muroc Air Force Base.  Among the five crew members who perished in the aviation mishap was famed test pilot USAF Captain Glen W. Edwards. The USAF/Northrop YB-49 heavy bomber prototype first flew in October of 1947.  […]

X-4 Ship No. 2 First Flight

Sixty-two years this week, the No. 2 USAF/Northrop X-4 experimental flight research aircraft took to the air for the first time.  The flight of the second X-4 prototype originated from and recovered at Muroc Air Force Base, California. The USAF/Northrop X-4 was an early X-plane designed to explore the flight characteristics of a swept-wing, tailless […]

Mariner 9 Heads For Mars

Forty years ago today, the United States launched the Mariner 9 spacecraft on a mission to Mars.  Among other achievements, Mariner 9 would become the first terrestrial spacecraft to orbit another planet other than Earth. The Mariner Program was a NASA project whose goal was to investigate the planets Mars, Venus and Mercury from space.  […]

Great White Bird’s Debut

Forty-seven years ago this month, the No. 1 USAF/North American XB-70A Valkyrie aircraft was officially unveiled to the aviation public in a rollout ceremony conducted at USAF Plant 42 in Palmdale, California.  The Great White Bird’s public debut occurred on Thursday, 11 May 1964. The XB-70A Valkyrie was designed as an intercontinental bomber.  Its original […]

The Man in the Arena

Forty-nine years ago this month, Mercury Astronaut M. Scott Carpenter orbited the Earth three times aboard his Aurora 7 Mercury spacecraft.  In doing so, Carpenter became the second American to reach Earth orbit. Project Mercury was America’s first manned spaceflight program.  A total of six (6) flights took place between May of 1961 and May […]

Project Reach

Sixty-one years ago this month, Viking No. 4 soared to a record altitude of 91.2 nautical miles following launch from the USS Norton Sound.  Known as Project Reach, the flight was conducted by the United States Navy to demonstrate the feasibility of using ship-launched rockets to carry scientific payloads into space. The Viking rocket was […]

The Hermes II Incident

Sixty-four years ago this month, a missile launched on a flight test out of White Sands Proving Ground strayed from the test range and impacted near Ciudad Juarez, Mexico.  The non-fatal mishap was attributed to a breakdown in range safety protocol. The V2 missile (Vengeance Weapon No. 2) was developed by Nazi Germany during World […]

Covert First Flight Drama

  Forty-nine years ago this week, the highly-classified CIA/Lockheed A-12, with Lockheed Test Pilot Lou Schalk at the controls, took to the air for the first time.   The historic flight originated from the U.S. government’s top secret flight test facility at Groom Lake, Nevada. The high stakes of the Cold War compelled the United States […]

Jet-Powered VTOL Feat

Fifty-four years ago this month, the USAF/Ryan X-13 Vertijet completed history’s first vertical-to horizontal-back to vertical flight of a jet-powered Vertical Take-Off and Landing (VTOL) aircraft.  This event took place at Edwards Air Force Base, California with Ryan Chief Test Pilot Peter F. Girard at the controls. The X-13 Vertijet was an experimental flight vehicle […]

NASA’s Finest Hour

Forty-one years ago today, the crew of Apollo 13 left Earth headed for the Fra Mauro highlands of the Moon.  Less than six days later, they would be back on Earth following an epic life and death struggle to survive the effects of an explosion that rocked their spacecraft 200,000 miles from home. Apollo 13 […]

Solar Max Repair Mission

Twenty-seven years ago this week, the Solar Max satellite was retrieved from, repaired in and redeployed to orbit by the crew of STS 41-C.  The historic event marked the first time in the annals of spaceflight that a satellite was repaired on-orbit. Space Transportation System (STS) 41-C was one of the most eventful and historic missions of […]

X-43A Speed Record

   Seven years ago this week, the NASA X-43A scramjet-powered flight research vehicle reached a record speed of over 4,600 mph (Mach 6.83).  The test marked the first time in the annals of aviation that a flight-scale scramjet accelerated an aircraft in the hypersonic Mach number regime.   NASA initiated a technology demonstration program known […]

Explorer III – Short & Sweet

Fifty-three years ago this week, Explorer III became the third artificial satellite to be successfully orbited by the United States.  Interestingly, this early trio of successful orbital missions had been achieved in a period of less than 60 days. The early Explorer satellites (Explorer I, II and III) were designated as Explorer A spacecraft.  Their primary mission was to […]

Emergency in Space

Forty-five years ago this week, the crew of Gemini VIII successfully regained control of their tumbling spacecraft following failure of an attitude control thruster.  The incident marked the first life-threatening on-orbit emergency and resulting mission abort in the history of Amercian manned spaceflight. Gemini VIII was the sixth manned mission of the Gemini Program.  The […]

The First OSO Mission

Forty-nine years ago today, the United States successfully launched Orbiting Solar Observatory No. 1 (OSO-1) into Earth orbit.  This robotic spacecraft provided the first detailed scientific examination of the Sun from space. The 1960’s was a time of both rapid growth and spectacular achievements in space exploration.  Indeed, weather satellites, communications satellites and surveillance satellites […]

X-10 Fastest Flight

Fifty-five years ago this month, the USAF/North American X-10 experimental research vehicle hit a maximum speed of Mach 2.05 during its 19th test flight.  The mark established a new speed record for turbojet-powered aircraft. The precedent set by the Nazi V-1 and V-2 Vergeltungswaffen (Vengeance Weapons) in World War II motivated the United States to launch a post-war effort […]

Supersonic Nightmare

  Fifty-six years ago this week, North American test pilot George F. Smith became the first man to survive ejection from an aircraft in supersonic flight.  Smith ejected from his F-100A Super Sabre at 777 MPH (Mach 1.05) as the crippled aircraft passed through 6,500 feet in a near-vertical dive. On the morning of Saturday, […]

SCOUT Orbits Explorer IX

Fifty-years ago this week, the NASA SCOUT small launch vehicle successfully orbited the Explorer IX satellite.  This achievement marked the first time that an all-solid propellant launch vehicle orbited an artificial satellite. The concept for the Solid Controlled Orbital Utility Test (SCOUT) launch vehicle dates back to the late 1950’s.  The National Advisory Committee For […]

Historic Venusian Flyby

Thirty-seven years ago this month, the Mariner 10 interplanetary space probe successfully conducted a flyby encounter with the planet Venus.  The Venusian flyby served as a necessary prelude to a subsequent first-ever flyby of the planet Mercury. The Mariner Program concentrated on the scientific exploration of the inner planets of the solar system.  Namely, Mars, […]

HAM in a Can

 Fifty-years ago today, NASA successfully conducted a critical flight test of the agency’s Mercury-Redstone vehicle which helped clear the way for the United States’ first manned suborbital spaceflight.  Riding the Mercury spacecraft into space and back was a 44-month old chimpanzee by the name of HAM. Project Mercury was America’s first manned spaceflight program.  Simply put, […]

Rare Opportunity

Seven years ago this week, NASA’s Mars Exploration Rover (MER) Opportunity landed at Meridiani Planum on the surface of the planet Mars.  Incredibly, the robotic rover continues to gather geological, atmospheric and astronomical data well beyond its design mission duration of ninety (90) Martian days.  Mars is the 4th planet out from the Sun.  It has a diameter a […]

Polaris A1 Flight Milestone

Fifty-one years ago this month, a developmental version of the USN/Lockheed Polaris A1 Fleet Ballistic Missile was test-flown from Cape Canaveral, Florida.  The successful test marked a key milestone in the flight-proving of the Polaris missile’s Inertial Navigation System (INS). The Cold War between the United States and the Soviet Union spawned the development of a Nuclear Triad by both sides.  The […]

An Amazing Tail

Forty-seven years ago today, a USAF/Boeing B-52H Stratofortress landed safely following structual failure of its vertical tail during an encounter with unusually severe clear air turbulence.  The harrowing incident occurred as the aircraft was undergoing structural flight testing in the skies over East Spanish Peak, Colorado.  Turbulence is the unsteady, erratic motion of an atmospheric air mass.  It is attributable to […]

Supersonic One-Upmanship

Sixty-two years ago this week, the USAF/Bell XS-1 became the first aircraft of any kind to achieve supersonic flight from a ground take-off.  The daring feat took place at Muroc Air Force Base with USAF Captain Charles E. Yeager at the controls of the XS-1. Rocket-powered X-aircraft such as the XS-1, X-1A, X-2 and X-15 were air-launched from a […]

When Will We Go Back?

  Thirty-eight years ago this month, NASA successfully conducted the sixth lunar landing mission of the Apollo Program.  Known as Apollo 17, the flight marked the last time that men from the planet Earth explored the surface of the Moon. Apollo 17 was launched from LC-39A at Cape Canaveral, Florida on Thursday, 07 December 1972.  With a lift-off […]

That Others Might Live

Fifty-six years ago this month, USAF Lieutenant Colonel John Paul Stapp set a record for human G-tolerance when his Sonic Wind #1 rocket-powered test sled decelerated from 632 mph to a full stop in roughly 1.4 seconds.  In so doing, Stapp endured a deceleration load equal to 46.2 times his weight. The period immediately following World War II marked […]

F-104C World Altitude Mark

Fifty-one years ago this week, USAF Captain Joe B. Jordan zoomed a modified USAF/Lockheed F-104C Starfighter to a world altitude record of 103,395.5 feet above mean sea level.  The flight originated from and recovered to the Air Force Flight Test Center (AFFTC) at Edwards Air Force Base, California. On Tuesday, 14 July 1959, the USSR established a […]

14 Days in a Phone Booth

Forty-five years ago this month, Gemini 7 set a new record for long-duration manned spaceflight.  The official lift-off-to-splashdown flight duration was 330 hours, 35 minutes and 1 second. Project Gemini was the critical bridge between America’s fledging manned spaceflight effort – Project Mercury – and the bold push to land men on the Moon – Project Apollo.  While the events and […]

YF-12A Final Mission

  Thirty-one years ago this month, the 2nd and only surviving USAF/Lockheed YF-12A completed its final NASA flight research mission.  The flight brought to a close the 10-year period within which the YF-12A was employed as a NASA high-speed flight research platform.  The YF-12A was the interceptor variant of the vaunted Lockheed A-12 Mach 3+ aircraft.  Armed with a quartet of Hughes AIM-47A air-to-air […]

The Lone MOL Flight

Forty-four years ago this month, a prototype of the USAF/Douglas Manned Orbiting Laboratory (MOL) was launched into Earth orbit.  It was the first and only orbital flight test of the military space station. The Manned Orbiting Laboratory (MOL) was a United States Air Force (USAF) program to develop a military reconnaissance space platform in the 1960’s.  Using advanced optic, […]

First Reusable Space Ship

  Twenty-nine years ago this month, the Space Shuttle Columbia completed the second mission of the Space Shuttle Program.  Designated STS-2, the mission marked the first reuse of a space vehicle for manned orbital flight.  America’s early manned spacecraft – Mercury, Gemini and Apollo – were single-flight vehicles.  That is, a new spacecraft was required for each space mission.  This was appropriate for meeting the […]

First to Mach 6

Forty-nine years ago this week, the USAF/NASA/North American X-15 became the first manned aircraft to exceed Mach 6.  United States Air Force test pilot Major Robert M. White was at the controls of the legendary hypersonic flight research aircraft. The North American X-15 was the first manned hypersonic aircraft.  It was designed, engineered, constructed and first flown in the 1950’s.  As […]

Convair XFY-1 Pogo

Fifty-six years ago this week, the USN/Convair XFY-1 became the first Vertical Take-Off and Landing (VTOL) aircraft to successfully transition from vertical to horizontal flight.  The historic flight was piloted by famed Convair engineering test pilot James F. “Skeets” Coleman. Motivated by World War II lessons-learned, the United States Navy began contemplating the feasibility of using VTOL aircraft for fleet […]

The Flight of Sigma 7

Forty-eight years ago this month, Mercury Astronaut Walter M. Schirra, Jr. orbited the Earth six (6) times in his Mercury spacecraft code-named Sigma 7.  The near-perfect 9-hour spaceflight was the United States’ third manned orbital mission flown within a period of eight (8) months. Project Mercury was United States’ first manned spaceflight program.  This historic pioneering space effort […]

Going Triple-Sonic

Forty-five years ago this month, the USAF/North American XB-70A Valkyrie reached three times the speed of sound for the first time.  The historic aviation achievement took place on the 18th anniversary of the breaking of the sound barrier by the USAF/Vell XS-1. When it comes to legendary aircraft, aviation enthusiasts speak in almost reverent terms about the XB-70A Valkyrie.  […]

Genesis of a Legend

  Sixty-three years ago this month, the swept-wing XP-86, the initial version of the famed USAF/North America F-86 Sabre, began flight testing at what is now Edwards Air Force Base.  The popular Mig Alley legend would be produced in numerous variants and ultimately rack-up a total production run of nearly 10,000 aircraft worldwide. In the waning days of World War II, […]

Return to Flight

Twenty-two years ago this week, the Space Shuttle Discovery and its five man crew landed on Rogers Dry Lake at Edwards Air Force Base to successfully complete the Return-to-Flight (RTF) mission of STS-26.  The flight signaled a resumption of the Space Shuttle Program after a 32-month hiatus in manned spaceflight resulting from the Challenger disaster. Well chronicled is the tragic loss of […]

Penultimate Gemini Mission

Forty-four years ago this month,  Gemini 11 flew a spectacular 3-day mission that helped pave the way to the first manned lunar landing.  The all-Navy crew included astronauts Charles P. Conrad, Jr. and Richard F. Gordon, Jr.  America’s manned space effort of the 1960’s and early 1970’s consisted of the Mercury, Gemini and Apollo Programs.  Mercury put the […]

Tale of the F-107A

Fifty-four years ago this month, the USAF/North American F-107A aircraft flew for the first time.  The Mach 2-capable fighter-bomber went supersonic on the type’s maiden flight. The F-107A was designed, developed and tested by North American Aviation (NAA) in the mid-1950’s.   With it, the contractor hoped to satisfy Tactical Air Command’s (TAC) need for a front line fighter-bomber.  However, Republic […]

Historic ASAT Test

Twenty-five years ago today, the USAF/LTV ASM-135 anti-satellite missile successfully intercepted a target satellite orbiting 300 nautical miles above the Earth.  The test was the first and only time that an aircraft-launched missile successfully engaged and destroyed an orbiting spacecraft. The United States began testing anti-satellite missiles in the late 1950’s.  These and subsequent vehicles used […]

Eternal Voyager

Thirty-three years ago this week, the Voyager 1 space probe was launched on a first-ever mission to fly past the planets Jupiter and Saturn.  Incredibly, both Voyager 1 and its companion Voyager 2 spacecraft continue to function quite well and transmit valuable data back to Earth as they voyage eternally in deep space. The Voyager Program was a 1970’s NASA project to investigate the […]

Eight Days or Bust

Forty-five years ago this month, NASA astronauts Leroy Gordon Cooper and Charles M. “Pete” Conrad set a new spaceflight endurance record during the flight of Gemini 5.  It was the third of ten (10) missions in the historic Gemini spaceflight series.  The motto for the mission was “Eight Days or Bust”. The purpose of Project Gemini was […]

X-24B Precision Landing

Thirty-five years ago this month, the USAF/NASA/Martin X-24B became the first lifting body to make an unpowered precision landing on a concrete runway.  The feat was pivotal to convincing NASA officials that landing the Space Shuttle Orbiter in an unpowered state was operationally feasible. Early Space Shuttle Orbiter operational concepts featured the use of a pair of turbojets to provide a powered […]

Skyrocket Maximum Altitude

Fifty-seven years ago this week, the USN/Douglas D-558-II Skyrocket soared to an unofficial world record altitude of 83,235 feet.  The Skyrocket’s record altitude mission was piloted by USMC test pilot and World War II triple-ace Lieutenant Colonel Marion E. Carl. The D-558-II was a United States Navy (USN) X-aircraft and first flew in February of 1948.  It was contemporaneous with the […]

Echo From the Past

Fifty years ago this week, the United States successfully launched the Echo 1A passive communications satellite into Earth orbit.  The 100-foot diameter balloon was among the largest objects ever to orbit the Earth. A plethora of earth-orbiting communication satellites provide for a global connectivity that is commonplace today.  Such was not always the case.  Roll the clock back […]

Atlas B Rises to the Occasion

Fifty-two years ago today, an Atlas B flew 2,500 miles down the Eastern Test Range in a key developmental test of America’s first Intercontinental Ballistic Missile (ICBM).  Among other historic achievements, the test marked the first successful flight of the innovative stage-and-a-half missile. The infamous Cold War between the United States and the Soviet Union was […]

1st Geosynchronous Satellite

Forty-seven years ago today, the United States successfully orbited the world’s first geosynchronous communications satellite.  This accomplishment marked the advent of today’s massive global communications market. A geosynchronous orbit is one in which the orbital period of a satellite is equal to the time it takes the Earth to complete one revolution about its rotational […]

First/Only Air-to-Air Nuke

Fifty-three years ago today, the United States successfully conducted the only live-fire test of the only known nuclear-armed air-to-air missile ever developed by the West.  The test took place over the Nuclear Test Site located at Yucca Flats, Nevada. The Cold War between the Soviet Union and the United States gave rise to the development of myriad nuclear weapons.  […]

The Missile From Hell

Forty-six years ago this month, the United States abandoned a 7-year effort to develop a nuclear-armed, supersonic cruise missile.  The joint USAF-AEC program was known as Project Pluto.   The centerpiece of this program was the nuclear-fueled, ramjet-powered Supersonic Low-Altitude Missile (SLAM). The 1950’s saw the development of myriad aircraft, missile and submarine concepts designed for delivery of nuclear weaponry over strategic distances.  This developmental […]

Long May You Run

Sixty-years ago this month, the United States launched a primitive two-stage rocket from an obscure site situated on Florida’s eastern coast.   The rocket was the Army’s Bumper-WAC No. 8.  The then little-known launch location has since become synonymous with American aerospace achievement.  We know it today as Cape Canaveral. The Bumper Program was a United States Army effort to reach […]

The Edge of Knight

Forty-three years ago this month, USAF Major William F. “Pete” Knight made an emergency landing in X-15 No. 1 at Mud Lake, Nevada.   Knight somehow managed to save the hypersonic aircraft following a complete loss of electrical power as it passed through 107,000 feet during climb.  The famed X-15 Program conducted 199 flights between June 1959 and October 1968.  North American […]

X-5 First Flight

Fifty-nine years ago this month, the No. 1 USAF/Bell X-5 variable-sweep-wing aircraft testbed took to the air for the first time with Bell test pilot Jean “Skip” Ziegler at the controls.  The X-5 holds the distinction of being the first aircraft capable of changing its wing sweep while in flight. The ability to change wing […]

The Flying Stove Pipe

Fifty-seven years ago this month, NACA test pilot A. Scott Crossfield piloted the United States Navy/Douglas D-558-I transonic research aircraft on the last of the type’s 230 flights.  The flight was conducted on Wednesday, 10 June 1953 at Edwards Air Force Base, California.  Flight near and beyond the speed of sound is characterized by large variations in flowfield density.  Variable density […]

The Angry Alligator

Forty-four years ago this month, NASA astronauts Thomas P. Stafford and Eugene A. Cernan became the 7th two-man Gemini crew to orbit the Earth.  Known as Gemini 9A, the mission was the 13th manned spaceflight flown by the United States. The Gemini Program was absolutely critical to the success of America’s lunar landing effort.  A total of 10 Gemini missions […]

The Original Rocket Man

Seventy-five years ago today, pioneering rocket scientist Robert H. Goddard and staff fired a liquid-fueled rocket to a record altitude of 7,500 feet above ground level.  The record-setting flight took place at Roswell, New Mexico. Robert Hutchings Goddard was born in Worcester, Massachusetts on Thursday, 05 October 1882.  He was enamored with flight, pyrotechnics, rockets and science fiction […]

Saving Skylab

Thirty-seven years ago this week, astronauts Pete Conrad, Joe Kerwin and Paul Weitz became the first NASA crew to fly aboard the recently-orbited Skylab space station.  Not only would the crew establish a new record for time in orbit, they would effect critical repairs to the space station which had been seriously damaged during launch. Skylab was America’s first space […]

Lunar Landing Dry Run

Forty-one years ago this week, Apollo 10 set sail for the Moon on a mission that would see American astronauts fly within a mere 8 nautical miles of the lunar surface.  This historic flight cleared the way for the first manned lunar landing just 2 months later. The infamous Apollo 1 fire in January 1967 resulted in a 21-month […]

A Bad Day in the Cockpit

Forty-three years ago today, NASA’s experimental M2-F2 lifting body flight research aircraft was demolished in a horrific landing mishap on Rogers Dry Lake at Edwards Air Force Base.  Although critically injured, NASA test pilot Bruce A. Peterson survived the mishap. A lifting body is a wingless aircraft wherein the aerodynamic lift required for flight is derived solely from […]

The Flight of Freedom 7

Forty-nine years ago this week, United States Navy Commander Alan Bartlett Shepard, Jr. became the first American to be launched into space.  Shepard named his Mercury spacecraft “Freedom 7”. Officially designated as Mercury-Redstone 3 (MR-3) by NASA, the mission was America’s first true attempt to put a man into space.  MR-3 was a sub-orbital flight.  This […]

An Inauspicious Debut

  Fifty-nine years ago today, the first flight test of a full-scale Lockheed X-7A ramjet test vehicle took place near Alamogordo, New Mexico.  However, the dreaded flight test gremlins prevailed on this occasion as the entire X-7 launch stack disintegrated shortly after drop from its USAF B-29 launch aircraft. The inauspicious start to the X-7 […]

The Mercury Seven

Fifty-one years ago this month, NASA held a press conference in Washington, D.C. to introduce the seven men selected to be Project Mercury Astronauts.  They would become known as the Mercury Seven or Original Seven. Project Mercury was America’s first manned spaceflight program.  The overall objective of Project Mercury was to place a manned spacecraft in Earth […]

Hail Columbia!

Twenty-nine years ago today, the United States successfully launched the Space Shuttle Columbia into orbit about the Earth.  It was the maiden flight of the Nation’s Space Transportation System (STS). The Space Shuttle was unlike any manned space vehicle ever flown.  A giant aircraft known as the Orbiter was side-mounted on a huge liquid-propellant stage called the External […]

First Air-Launched Satellite Mission

Twenty-years ago today, the Orbital Sciences Corporation (OSC) orbited a PegSat satellite using the then-new Pegasus 3-stage launch vehicle.  This historic event marked the first successful implementation of the air-launched satellite launcher concept. The concept of air-launch dates back to the 1940’s and the early days of United States X-plane flight research.   A multi-engine aircraft known as the mothership was employed to […]

X-24A Max Speed Mission

Thirty-nine years ago today, the USAF/NASA X-24A lifting body was flown to a speed of 1,036 mph (Mach 1.6) by NASA Research Pilot John Manke.  It was the fastest flight of the rocket-powered lifting body. A lifting body is an unconventional aircraft in that the vehicle generates lift without the benefit of a wing.  Rather, the aircraft produces lift by the manner […]

First Gemini Mission

Forty-five years ago this week, Gemini III was launched into Earth orbit with astronauts Vigil I. Grissom and John W. Young onboard.  The 3-orbit mission marked the first time that the United States flew a multi-man spacecraft. Project Mercury was America’s first manned spaceflight series.  Project Apollo would ultimately land men on the Moon and return them […]

A Grapefruit in Orbit

Fifty-two years ago this week, the United States Navy Vanguard Program registered its first success with the orbiting of the Vanguard 1 satellite.  The diminutive orb was the fourth man-made object to be placed in Earth orbit. The Vanguard Program was established in 1955 as part of the United States involvement in the upcoming International Geophysical Year […]

SPRINT Salvo Launch

Thirty-nine years ago this month,  a pair of SPRINT ABM interceptors fired from the Kwajalein Missile Range intercepted a reentry vehicle launched from Vandenberg Air Force Base, California.  It was the first salvo launch of the legendary hypersonic interceptor. The Safeguard Anti-Ballistic Missile (ABM) System was developed between the mid-960’s and mid-1970’s to protect United States ICBM sites.  Safeguard consisted […]

A Salute to Pioneer 4

  Fifty-one years ago this week, NASA’s Pioneer 4 probe flew within 37,000 miles of the lunar surface.  In doing so, the spacecraft flew the first successful American lunar flyby mission.   The Pioneer Program was a series of planetary space missions conducted by NASA between 1958 and 1978.  The target of the early missions (1958-1960) was the Moon.  The […]

Multi-Staging Milestone

Sixty-one years ago this week, a United States two-stage liquid-fueled rocket reached a then-record altitude of 250 miles.  Launch took place from Pad 33 at White Sands Proving Ground (WSPG), New Mexico. The Bumper Program was a United States Army effort to reach flight altitudes and velocities never before achieved by a rocket vehicle.  The name “Bumper” was derived from […]

Up From the Sea

Two years ago this month, a United States Navy STANDARD Missile SM-3 Block IA intercepted and destroyed a failed NRO satellite at an altitude of 133 nautical miles.  The relative velocity at intercept was in excess of 22,000 mph. The United States Navy/Raytheon Missile Systems SM-3 (RIM-161) is the sea-based arm of the Missile Defense Agency’s Ballistic Missile Defense […]

The Flight of Friendship 7

  Forty-eight years ago this month, Project Mercury Astronaut John H. Glenn, Jr. became the first American to orbit the Earth.  Glenn’s spacecraft name and mission call sign was Friendship 7. Mercury-Atlas 6 (MA-6) lifted-off from Cape Canaveral’s Launch Complex 14 at 14:47:39 UTC on Tuesday, 20 February 1962.  It was the first time that […]

Aquila Maxima

Thirty-five years ago today, an USAF F-15A Eagle reached an altitude of 30 km (98,425 feet) 207.8 seconds from brake release.  The pilot for the record-breaking mission was USAF Major Roger Smith. Operation Streak Eagle was a mid-1970’s effort by the United States Air Force to set eight (8) separate time-to-climb records using the McDonnell-Douglas F-15 Air Superiority […]

We Remember

Twenty-four years ago this week, the seven member crew of STS-51L were killed when the Space Shuttle Challenger disintegrated 73 seconds after launch from LC-39B at Cape Canaveral, Florida.   It was the first fatal in-flight accident in American spaceflight history.   In remarks made at a memorial service held for the Challenger Seven in Houston, Texas on Friday, 31 January 1986, President […]

Cactus 1549

One year ago this month, US Airways Flight 1549 successfully ditched in the Hudson River following loss of thrust in both turbofan engines.  Incredibly, all 155 passengers and crew members survived. US Airways Flight 1549 lifted-off from Runway 4 of New York’s LaGuardia Airport at 18:25:56 UTC on Thursday, 15 January 2009.  The Airbus 320-214 (N106US) was making its 16,299th flight.  Call sign for […]

Navaho Flight Test Milestone

Forty-two years ago this month, a XSM-64 Navaho G-26 flight test vehicle flew 1,075 miles in 40 minutes at a sustained speed of Mach 2.8.  It was the 8th flight test of the ill-fated Navaho Program. The post-World War II era saw the development of a myriad of missile weapons systems.  Perhaps the most influential and enigmatic of these […]

Surveyor Program Finale

Forty-two years ago this month, the Surveyor 7 spacecraft soft-landed in the lunar highlands near the Crater Tycho.  It was the fifth and last Surveyor vehicle to successfully perform an autonomous landing on the Moon. In preparation for the first manned lunar landing, the United States conducted an extensive investigation of the Moon using Ranger, […]

Saving Apollo

Forty-one years ago this month, three American astronauts became the first men to orbit the Earth’s Moon during the flight of Apollo 8.  The flight also featured the first manned flight of the mighty Saturn V rocket booster as well as history’s first superorbital entry of a manned spacecraft. Following the Apollo 1 tragedy in January of 1967, […]

In the Beginning

One-hundred and six years ago this month, the Wright Flyer became the first aircraft in history to achieve powered flight.  The site of this historic event was Kill Devil Hills near Kitty Hawk, North Carolina. Americans Wilbur and Orville Wright began their legendary aeronautical careers in 1899.  In just four short years, the brothers would go from complete aeronautical novices […]

Trouble in the Thin Air

Fifty-six years ago this month, USAF Major Charles E. Yeager set an unofficial world speed record of 1,650 mph (Mach 2.44) in the Bell X-1A flight research aircraft.  In the process, Yeager nearly lost his life. The USAF/Bell X-1A was a second generation X-aircraft intended to explore flight beyond Mach 2.  It measured 35.5 feet in length […]

Zoom Flight

Forty-six years ago this month, USAF Major Robert W. Smith zoomed the rocket-powered Lockheed NF-104A to an unofficial record altitude of 120,800 feet.  This mark still stands as the highest altitude ever achieved by a United States aircraft from a runway take-off. A zoom maneuver is one in which aircraft kinetic energy (speed) is traded for potential energy (altitude).  In doing […]

First South Pole Flight

Eighty years ago this month, a four-man crew became the first Antarctic explorers to fly over the Earth’s South Pole.  The aircraft used to make the historic flight was a Ford Trimotor. While substantial exploration of the Artic and Antarctic by land and sea had occurred far earlier, exploration of these regions by air was in its infancy during the decade of the 1920’s.  […]

Operation SKYBURNER

Forty-eight years ago this month, a United States Navy YF4H-1 Phantom II set a world absolute speed record of 1,606.342 mph.  Piloting the record flight was United States Marine Corps Lieutenant Colonel Robert B. Robinson. The McDonnell Douglas YF4H-1 Phantom II was first flown in May 1958.  The aircraft measured 58 feet length with a wing span of 38 feet.  Gross take-off […]

Scramjet Flight Test History

Five years ago today, the NASA X-43A scramjet-powered flight research vehicle reached a record speed of over 6,600 mph (Mach 9.68).  In doing so, the X-43A broke its own record speed of Mach 6.83 (4,600 mph) and became the fastest airbreathing aircraft of all time. In 1996, NASA initiated a technology demonstration program known as HYPER-X.  The central goal of the HYPER-X […]

Gemini’s Grand Finale

Forty-three years ago this month, NASA’s pioneering spaceflight program, Project Gemini, was brought to a successful conclusion with the 4-day flight of Gemini XII.  Remarkably, the mission was the tenth Gemini flight in 20 months. Boosted to Earth orbit by a two-stage Titan II launch vehicle, Gemini XII Command Pilot James A. Lovell, Jr. and Pilot Edwin E. “Buzz” Aldrin, Jr. […]

Double Sonic First

Fifty-six years ago this month, the USN/Douglas D-558-II Skyrocket became the first aircraft to fly at twice the speed of sound.  This historic event took place on Friday, 20 November 1953 at Edwards Air Force Base, California. The D-558-II was a United States Navy (USN) X-aircraft and first flew in February of 1948.  It was contemporaneous with […]

Walker’s Wild Ride

Fifty-five years ago this month, the USAF/Douglas X-3 Stiletto research aircraft exhibited a then little known dynamic instability mode during a flight test with NACA test pilot Joseph A. Walker at the controls. The X-3 was designed to fly at speeds up to Mach 2.  The aircraft was approximately 67 feet in length and had a wing span on […]

Like a Phoenix Rising

Forty-one years ago this month, NASA successfully conducted the first manned Apollo Earth-orbital mission with the flight of Apollo 7.  This mission was a critically-important milestone along the path to the first manned lunar landing in July 1969. The launch of Apollo 7 took place from Launch Complex 34 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida […]

Sound Barrier Breakthrough

Sixty-two years ago this month, the legendary USAF/Bell XS-1 experimental aircraft exceeded the speed of sound when it reached a maximum speed of 700 mph (Mach 1.06) at 45,000 feet. Bell Aircraft Corporation of Buffalo, New York built three copies of the XS-1 under contract to the United States Army Air Forces (USAAF).  The aircraft were designed to […]

The Fastest X-15 Flight

Forty-two years ago this month, USAF Major William J. “Pete” Knight piloted the fabled USAF/North American X-15A-2 hypersonic research aircraft to a record speed of 4,520 mph – about a mile and a quarter per second. North American’s original X-15 production run consisted of three (3) aircraft.  The X-15A-2 was a rebuild of the 2nd airframe (S/N 56-6671) […]

A High Price

Fifty-three years ago this month, the Bell X-2 rocket-powered research aircraft reached a record speed of 2,094 mph with USAF Captain Milburn G. “Mel” Apt at the controls.  This corresponded to a Mach number of 3.2 at 65,000 feet. Mel Apt’s historic achievement came about because of the Air Force’s desire to have the X-2 reach Mach […]

The Mighty Thor

Fifty-two years ago this month, the United States successfully tested a USAF/Douglas Thor missile for the first time.   Thor Vehicle 105, launched from Launch Complex 17 at Cape Canaveral, flew 1,100 miles down the Eastern Test Range (ETR) on Saturday, 21 September 1957. Named after the Norse god of thunder, the Thor (PGM-17A) was designed as a […]

Racing the Sun

Thirty-five years ago this month, the legendary USAF/Lockheed SR-71A Blackbird triple-sonic aircraft established an official world speed record as it  traversed the 5,446.87 statute miles between London and Los Angeles in 3 hours 47 minutes and 39 seconds.   Average speed was 1,435.59 mph. The all-USAF crew of Captain Harold B. Adams (Pilot) and Major William C. Machorek […]

First of the Space Men

  Fifty-three years ago  today, the USAF/Bell X-2 research aircraft flew to an altitude of 126,200 feet.  This accomplishment took place on the penultimate mission of the type’s 20-flight aeronautical research program.  The date was Friday, 07 September 1956.  The X-2 was the successor to Bell’s X-1A rocket-powered aircraft which had recorded maximum speed and altitude marks […]

Aerospace Professional Short Courses

We take pause this week from our regular aerospace retrospective and consider a topic of a different nature.  Such a change-of-pace seems quite natural as summer wanes and legions of new and returning education seekers troop through the portals of our country’s universities.  However, rather than focus on the matriculating crowd, we will set our […]

The Highest X-15 Flight

Forty-six years ago this month, NASA chief research pilot Joseph A. Walker flew X-15 Ship No. 3 (S/N 56-6672) to an altitude of 354,200 feet.  This flight would mark the highest altitude ever achieved by the famed hypersonic research vehicle.   The date was Thursday, 22 August 1963. Carried aloft by NASA’s NB-52A (S/N 52-0003) mothership, Walker’s X-15 was […]

Lord, Take Care of Me Now

Forty-nine years ago this month, USAF Captain Joseph W. Kittinger, Jr. successfully completed a daring parachute jump from 102,800 feet (19.5 miles).  The historic bailout took place on Tuesday, 16 August 1960 over the Tularosa Basin of New Mexico.   Kittinger’s jump was the final mission of the three-jump Project Excelsior flight research effort which focused on manned testing of the Beaupre […]

Photographing Earth’s Nearest Neighbor in Space

Forty-three years ago today, the Lunar Orbiter 1 spacecraft began its 92 hour trip to the Moon.  Lunar Orbiter 1 rode into space aboard an Atlas-Agena D launch vehicle which lifted-off from Pad 13 at Cape Canaveral, Florida.  Lift-off time was 19:26 UTC on Wednesday, 10 August 1966. Lunar Orbiter 1 was the first of five moon mapping […]

A New Altitude Record

Fifty-eight years ago this week, a United States Navy Viking rocket soared to an altitude of 136 miles.  In doing so, it eclipsed the previous single stage altitude record of 114 miles set by  a captured German V-2 rocket on Tuesday, 17 December 1946.  The mission was part of the Navy’s 12-flight Viking Rocket flight test series […]

Return to Earth

  Forty years ago today, Apollo 11 astronauts Neil A. Armstrong, Edwin E. Aldrin, Jr., and Michael Collins arrived back at the Johnson Spacecraft Center (MSC) in Houston, Texas following their epic journey to and safe return from the Moon. Following splashdown in the Pacific Ocean on Thursday, 24 July, 1969, the Apollo 11 astronauts and their […]

Mission Accomplished, Mr. President

Forty years ago today, the United States of America landed two men on the surface of the Moon.  The Apollo 11 Lunar Module Eagle landed in Sea of Tranquility region of the Moon on Sunday, 20 July 1969 at 20:17:40 UTC.  Less than seven hours later, astronauts Neil A. Armstrong and Edwin E. Aldrin, Jr. […]

The Journey Begins

Forty years ago this week, the epic flight of Apollo 11, the first mission to land men on the Moon, began with launch from the Kennedy Space Center (KSC) at Merritt Island, Florida.  Nearly 1-million people gathered around America’s famous space complex to witness the historic event.  An estimated 1-billion viewers worldwide watched the proceedings on […]

Bicentennial Mars Landing

Thirty-three years ago this month, on the seventh anniversary of the first manned lunar landing, Viking I became the first spacecraft to successfully land on the surface of the planet Mars.  The primary purpose of the mission was to search for signs of life on the Martian surface. The Viking I mission began with launch from Earth on Wednesday, […]

First Supersonic Bomber

On Saturday,  29 June 1957, the USAF/Convair XB-58A (S/N 55-660) first attained its double-sonic design airspeed when it flew to Mach 2.03 at an altitude of 43,250 feet.   This historic achievement took place on the type’s 24th flight.  The mission totaled 1 hour and 55 minutes and was commanded by Convair test pilot B. A. Erickson The […]

Touching the Face of God

On Monday, 21 June 2004, Scaled Composite’s SpaceShipOne flew to an altitude of 62.214 statute miles.   The flight marked the first time that a privately-developed flight vehicle had flown above the 62-statute mile boundary that entitles the flight crew to FAI-certified astronaut wings.   As a result, SpaceShipOne pilot Mike Melvill became history’s first private citizen astronaut. […]

I Feel Like a Million Dollars!

Forty-four years ago this month, Astronaut Edward H. White II became the first American to perform what in NASA parlance is referred to as an Extra Vehicular Activity (EVA).  In simple terms; a space walk. White, Mission Commander James A. McDivitt and their Gemini IV spacecraft were launched into low Earth orbit by a two-stage […]

Midair! Midair! Midair!

  Forty-three years ago today, XB-70A Valkyrie Air Vehicle No. 2 (62-0207) took-off from Edwards Air Force Base, California for the final time.    The crew for this flight included  aircraft commander and North American test pilot Alvin S. White and right-seater USAF Major Carl S. Cross.  White would be making flight No. 67 in […]