CHAPTER 44 ►

“_Prophecies of the Next Age_”

The explosion of X-15 number three had a curious impact on me personally. For the first time in my flying career I was foggy-minded. I could not recall immediately exactly what happened, although in aerial emergencies in the past my mind always ticked on, recording even the most obscure gauge readings. Locked in the room with Q.C. and the others during the post-accident investigation, it took me fully ten minutes of thoughtful reconstruction to lay out the exact sequence of events that took place in the X-15 cockpit.

Flying home from Edwards late that night, I found my thoughts taking another unusual turn. Although I seldom think about death, my mind recreated in vivid detail the one death that stands out in my mind more than all others, that of my father.

He died on October 21, 1954, during the time I was flying for NACA at Edwards, six weeks or so after I drove the F-100 through the hangar wall. He had sold the farm at last, for a handsome profit, and moved to the California desert to be near his children and grandchildren. He dreamed of touring the United States in a trailer in the evening of his life. But it was too late. The more than nineteen years of hard physical labor on the farm drained his body of strength. After examining my father, one doctor told me: “He is the most worn-out man of sixty-three that I have ever seen.”

Soon he fell quite ill. My mother was just recovering from a stroke, and we brought in a nurse to help out. Toward the end, I spent almost every night in his house, sleeping on a cot next to his bed. I was there primarily out of love, to do what I could for him. But there was another reason. I was curious to see whether in his final hours this unwavering, iron-willed man would reveal any weakness. If I saw the slightest hint, I would find a way to head it off, or at least obscure it from him. For sixteen years or more I had been searching for a break in his strength. I never found it. I didn’t really expect him to ask for quarter now.

When I saw him on the morning of the 21st, I felt that he would not last the day. I was scheduled for a Skyrocket flight that morning and was on the verge of putting through a call to Walt Williams to cancel it when my father called for me.

“What were you supposed to be doing today?” he asked. “Why haven’t you gone to work?”

“Oh, nothing,” I said. “Just a routine flight. I can cancel it with no problem.”

“I want you to go ahead and do your job.” His voice was low but firm. His request was a command. There was no hint of quarter.

“Okay. But will you wait for me?” We both knew what I meant.

“Yes.”

I drove to the field and made the flight. My father waited, as he promised. As I soon learned from a telephone call, he died at the exact moment the Skyrocket’s wheels touched down on the lake at the conclusion of my flight. He died quietly and bravely, without a single compromise on his conscience. That he found what he sought in the next life I have no doubt, for he was an honorable man and a Christian.

Returning home that night after the X-15 explosion, the real significance of my own life, which I had pondered for so many months at Edwards, came to me as though crystallized by the accident. My own life, in a different setting in time and circumstance, was an imitation of my father’s, a striving toward unattainable perfection. As nature had sealed Bill Young’s eyes and then mysteriously opened his ears to sounds beyond the experience of other men, so nature wounded me in childhood and then mysteriously endowed me with a special spirit that put fear beyond my experience and spurred me to improve everything that crossed my path. Who can presume to know why? Nature and God are one. If there is an imperfection, it is not there by accident. Perhaps He intended that by my example the wounds of others lacking in this special spirit might be healed. I honestly cannot believe that my being present at the birth and growth of the X-15 was an accident. This blending of man and machine in a common cause must be a part of _His_ grand design.

My father may have fallen short of his goal. I have fallen short of my goal, probably I always shall. It may be that only ignorant men reach goals. The important thing, I think, as with the X-15, is the striving itself. Each of us who strives toward the unattainable contributes to man’s ever-growing reservoir of knowledge and fact. Each drop, however small, is vital for those who follow behind us. Without it man must inevitably atrophy. Thus, as Emerson says, “Men walk as prophecies of the next age.”

I realized that night that my new circle, the meaning of which I had so intensively probed during the long months at Edwards, was boundless. It was, in a few words, more of the same on a grander scale. The details were not important. The ultimate end was not a fixed slot, which I imagined in my youth to be the satisfying end, a life devoted not to the specific but to the infinite, to the collection of a few drops for that vast and wonderful pool. A small contribution which would ease my children’s way, or perhaps in time open men’s eyes to a part of the grand mystery.

* * * * *

It was quite late when I pulled into our driveway in Westchester. I strode briskly to the front door and entered quietly. The children were asleep. I mixed a drink and Alice and I relaxed in the living room.

“Well, you look all right to me,” she said.

“There’s nothing wrong with me.”

“So what’s next?” It was many years since she had put that question to me.

“I don’t know.” A thousand thoughts flashed through my mind. A thousand imperfections, a thousand horizons, a thousand Mount Everests, the story of man since time began. I was in a strange mood.

“Well,” Alice said, “they say life begins at forty. You’ve got a full year and a half to make up your mind.”

“You know what I’ve been thinking,” I said absently. “This house is getting pretty crowded with five lads. Maybe we ought to add a new wing. Then there’s another thing I’d like to do. Maybe we could build a little summerhouse out in the back yard--you know, one of those lattice-work things--with a tower, or cupola, on top. If we built one tall enough, we could see over the shrubbery and the fence. We could sit up there and watch the airplanes taking off and landing at the airport. We could see the sky and the horizon unobscured.”

The tower is not yet begun. But that is a new story, another dawn.

_Chronology_

DATE PLANE PILOT COMMENT

_1946_ Sept. NACA contingent arrives at Edwards Oct. X-1 Goodlin First powered flight

_1947_ Mar. D-558-I May First flight Aug. D-558-I Caldwell 640.7 mph Aug. D-558-I Carl 651 mph Oct. X-1 Yeager Mach 1.0

_1948_ Feb. D-558-II Martin First flight; Ground take-off Mar. X-1 Hoover First civilian; Mach 1.0 Sept. XF-92A Yeager First flight Dec. X-4 Tucker First flight

_1949_ Aug. X-1 Everest 73,000 ft.

_1950_ June D-558-II Bridgeman First air-launch

_1951_ June X-5 Ziegler First flight Aug. D-558-II Bridgeman 79,000 ft.; Mach 1.89 Nov. X-1 (#3) Cannon Blew up--destroyed Fall X-1-D Everest Blew up--mother plane

_1952_ June X-2 (#1) Ziegler Ballast--at Edwards; Glide Oct. X-3 Bridgeman First flight

_1953_ Feb. X-1-A Ziegler First powered flight May X-2 (#2) Ziegler Captive--Buffalo; Blew up--Ziegler killed Aug. D-558-II Carl 83,235 ft. Oct. XF-92A Crossfield Wheel collapsed; Plane retired Nov. D-558-II Crossfield Mach 2.0 Dec. X-1-A Yeager Mach 2.5; Tumble

_1954_ Apr. (X-15) NACA Summary Report; Plane born June X-1-A Murray 90,000 ft.; Tumble Aug. X-2 (#1) Everest First glide flight; Ballast; Damaged Oct. (X-15) Recommended by NACA Oct. X-1-B Murray First flight Dec. (X-15) Competition announced

_1955_ Aug. X-1-A Walker Fire--jettison plane Nov. X-2 Everest First powered flight Dec. X-1-E Walker First powered flight Dec. (X-15) Contract awarded to North American

_1956_ May X-2 (#2) Kincheloe First flight July X-2 Everest Mach 2.93 Sept. X-2 Kincheloe 126,200 ft. Sept. X-2 Apt First flight 2,094 mph; Crashed--killed Dec. (X-15) Mock-up complete

_1958_ July F-104 Kincheloe Killed Oct. (X-15 #1) Completed, shipped to Edwards

_1959_ Mar. X-15 #1 Crossfield First captive flight June X-15 #1 Crossfield First glide flight Sept. X-15 #2 Crossfield First powered flight

_1960_ Feb. (X-15 #1) Delivered to Air Force and NASA June X-15 #3 Crossfield Explosion during XLR-99 engine ground test Aug. X-15 #1 Walker 2,196 mph Aug. X-15 #1 White 136,500 ft.

_Index_

Aase, Carl, 72, 79

aero-space medicine, 187

aircraft: B-17, 107 B-25, 206 B-29, 48-50, 125, 127, 147, 171, 176, 201, 203 B-36, 222, 264 B-45, 30 B-47, 20, 25, 216 B-50, 146, 147, 151, 152 B-52, 264-265, 299, 301, 310, 316, 322, 331, 335, 352, 358, 377, 392 B-58, 215, 367 B-70, 293, 295, 357, 373, 397 “Banshee” (McDonnell’s F2H), 25, 299 Boeing’s Clipper, 76 Boeing’s 707, 20 British Comet Jet airliner, 235 C-3 Cub, 66 Convair’s 880, 297 Curtiss Robin, 74 DC-6, 139 DC-8, 297 DeHavilland Swallows, 33 Douglas D-558-II “Skyrocket,” 34, 46, 135, 139, 145, 149, 157, 158, 171, 177, 198, 212, 216, 223, 231, 241, 285 Douglas D-558, “Skystreak,” 47 Douglas D-558-I “Skystreak,” 33, 39, 47, 135, 159, 216 Eagle Rock, 64, 66 F4H, 287 F4U, 109, 110, 111 F6F, 104, 109 F8U, 287 F9F, 216 F11F, 287 F-80, 25 F-84, 25, 39 F-84-F, 193, 195, 216 F-86, 25, 193-194, 206, 216, 220, 233, 299 F-100, 45, 186, 194-198, 206, 221, 231, 289, 299, 341 F-101, 45, 186 F-102, 45, 167, 193, 216 F-104, 45, 185, 278, 300, 304, 341, 372, 381 F-105, 186, 215, 297 F-106, 167, 297 F-107, 215, 297, 299 F-108, 206, 293, 295, 357 “Glamorous Glennis,” 31, 127, 145 Hiller Helicopter, 216 Howard “Ike,” “Mike,” and “Pete,” 65 Howard “Mr. Mulligan,” 65, 75 Lancaster (British), 70 N3N (“Yellow Peril”), 90 P-51, 206, 241 R-4-D, 107 T-39, 299, 374 Travelair “Mystery Ship,” 65, 66 U-2, 275 Weddell-Williams “Special,” 65 X-1, 21-23, 26, 28, 31, 33, 47-58, 119, 125, 126, 128, 135, 137, 139, 158, 198, 223, 228, 237, 293, 311 X-1-A, 137, 138, 145, 159, 162, 180, 184, 200-205, 238, 286, 293, 299, 368, 381, 391 X-1-B, 137, 145, 148, 185, 201, 204, 212, 224, 286 X-1-C, 137, 145 X-1-D, 137, 145, 146, 159, 201, 381 X-1-E, 185, 204, 208, 211, 286 X-1-3 (“Queenie”), 145, 147, 148, 201, 350, 381 X-2, 34-35, 135, 137, 139, 149, 150-153, 157, 165, 185, 201-207, 228, 231, 238, 247, 275, 286, 293, 343, 371, 381, 396 X-3, 34, 141, 148-149, 152, 165, 198, 286, 293, 396 X-4, 32-33, 38-44, 47, 135, 158, 198, 278, 286 X-5, 34, 154-155, 158, 198, 216, 286 X-15, 35, 49, 158, 165, 186, 187-189, 204, 207-208, 212, 216, 220, 222, 227, 231, 245, 249, 251, 264, 268, 272, 277, 282, 286, 290, 295, 299, 300, 304, 310, 322, 325, 338, 343, 358, 377, 389, 392, 401, 405, 409 X-15 Number 2, 346, 350 X-15 Number 3, 407 X-15B, 279, 280-283, 287, 295, 318 XF-85, 299 XF-92A, 148, 165, 167, 193, 216, 278 YF-84, 216, 276

Allavie, Capt John E. (“Jack”), 266, 314, 325, 328, 335, 367 ff., 371, 376, 394

Allen, Edward (“Eddie”), 23, 27, 76, 373

Ames, NACA laboratory, 26, 29, 35, 156

Ankenbruk, Herman O., 174, 175, 177

Apt, Capt. Milburn (“Mel”), 213-214, 215-216, 247, 270, 367, 389, 396

Army’s Ballistic Missile Agency, Huntsville, Ala., 374

Atwood, J. Lee, 209-212

auxiliary power unit (APU), 310-312

Babb, Harold, 60

Baker, Joel R. (“Bob”), Jr., 210

ballistic-missile nose, 224

Barker, Peter R. (“Pete”), 314, 315, 328 ff.

Barnes, Francis Lowe (“Pancho”), 29, 40, 65, 215

Beach, Melvin L. (“Mel”), 309, 326

Beal, Arthur, 78, 81, 84

Bell (aircraft company), 21-23, 31, 34, 127, 137, 146, 149, 153, 201, 204

Benner, Roland R. (“Bud”), 226, 349, 356

Berkowitz, Harry W. (“Bill”), 300, 314, 352, 359, 360, 367

Bikle, Paul, 298, 390

Blossom, Mrs. (author’s sixth grade teacher), 72

Bock, Capt. Charles, 266, 314, 315, 316, 320 ff., 328, 329, 331 ff., 338, 339, 340, 352, 355, 360, 361, 367, 394

Boeing (aircraft company), 20-21, 82, 85, 88, 287

Bonney, Walter, 169, 170, 178

Boyd, Col. Albert, 31, 40, 41, 146, 165, 190

Braun, Wernher von, 374, 377

Bridgeman, William B. (“Bill”), 34, 46, 48-49, 52, 139, 148, 159, 210, 216, 238

Brown, Claude (brother-in-law), 36

Brown, Clinton, 163

Brown, Elena Ruth (“Babe”)--sister, 36, 62, 78, 102

Brown, Louise, 56

Bryan, John C. (“Jack”), 210

Buchanan, G. A., 84, 85

Butchart, Stanley P. (“Stan”), 175, 176, 193, 200 ff.

Butler, Capt. Francis M., 190

Caldwell, Comdr. Turner F., Jr., 47

Canary, John O. (“Jack”), 221

Cannon, Joseph A. (“Joe”), 147, 148, 299

“captive” fuel tests, 152

Carl, Maj. Marion, 47, 159, 216, 241, 287

Carmen, L. Robert, 35, 142, 157, 226, 293-294

Carpenter, Brig. Gen. John W., 297

Century Series supersonic fighters, 45, 136, 185

Champine, Robert S. (“Bob”), 30, 128

Civilian Pilot Training (CPT), 84

Clark, Dr. David M., 239-240, 242, 243, 253 ff.

Clark, Mrs. (author’s first grade teacher), 72

Clousing, Laurence, 27

Cokely, E. R. (“Ed”), 298-299

Colvin, Lou, 111, 112

commercial jet airliner (U. S.), _see_ Boeing 707

Cooper, Brig. Gen. Marcus, 297

cosmic radiation, 164, 187

Crossfield’s family: Albert Scott (father), 56, 407; Alice (wife), 22, 28-29, 37, 96, 102, 120, 285; Amasa Scott (grandfather), 56; Becky (daughter), 37, 121; Lucia (mother), 55; Mary Ann (sister), 62, 80; Tommy (son), 37 _See also_ Elena Ruth Brown

Crow, Sgt. Herbert G., 314

Doolittle, James H. (“Jimmy”), 23, 76, 152, 186

Douglas (aircraft company), 34, 186, 204

Drake, Hubert M., 35, 142, 157, 226

Drakeford, Sir Arthur, 57

Drakeford, Peter A., 57

Drakeford, Ruth, 57

“Dry lakes,” 42, 44, 282; Cuddeback Dry Lake, 42, 380; Harper Dry Lake, 43; Rogers Dry Lake, 42, 52, 129, 151, 223, 301, 321, 340; Rosamond Dry Lake, 43, 338, 355, 380; Three Sisters Dry Lakes, 43, 380

Dryden, Dr. Hugh, 152, 153, 159, 161, 168, 179, 188, 206, 283

Durrup, Lt. Paul, 237, 238

Dwyer, Bessie, 57

Dwyer, Thomas Aloysius, 54

Dwyer, Thomas Aloysius, Jr., 55

Earhart, Amelia, 65

Edwards (desert test center), Calif., 28

ejection seat, 230, 233, 259, 260

Elkin, Hugh, 222, 396

Emerson, Ralph Waldo, 319, 409

“escape capsule,” 230-232

Everest, Maj. Frank K. (“Pete”), 31, 32, 40, 42-43, 127, 146, 147, 165, 180, 184, 190, 201, 204, 207, 210, 213, 214, 216, 237-238, 367, 371, 389, 396

Everest, Frank K., _The Fastest Man Alive_, 146

“extra-atmospheric” flight, 164

Feltz, Charles, 220-222, 225, 226 ff., 244, 251, 260, 261, 262 ff., 267-270, 275 ff., 284, 289, 290, 292 ff., 303, 307 ff., 316, 326, 333, 336, 342, 349, 356, 359, 364, 365, 371, 385, 391, 395, 406

Ferren, Roy, 380, 382

Finch, Thomas, 154

Flagg, John, 255, 256, 257

Flateboe, Comdr. William, 111, 112

Flickinger, Brig. Gen. Don, 258, 267, 268, 277, 282, 283

Fohl, Simon S. (“Si”), 309-310

“forced eating” methods, 277

Freedman, Toby, 301, 383-384

Freeman, Oscar, 315, 328

Fulton, Fitzhugh, 49, 51-52, 367, 368, 394

Gahl, Capt. Edward C., 266

Gallanes, Harry, 400-401

Gates, Thomas S., Secretary of Defense, 396

Gibb, John, 349, 353, 356

Givens, Capt. Vergil C., 176

Glennan, Dr. T. Keith, 283

Goodlin, Chalmers (“Slick”), 21, 23, 30

Goodrich Tire and Rubber Company, 237

Gravity, positive (positive G), 129

Gregorious, Capt. John, 190

Griffith, John, 28, 29, 31, 39, 126

Grumman (aircraft company), 76

Harper, John, 30

Harvey, Quinton C. (“Q.C.”), 147, 299 ff., 308, 316, 322, 324, 328-329, 335-336, 339, 342, 346, 349, 355, 356, 359, 360, 365, 368, 371, 373, 376 ff., 386, 389, 401, 403, 407

Helsell, William A. (“Bill”), 111, 112, 113, 115, 116, 117

Henry, Dr. James P., 237

High Speed Flight Station, NACA, Edwards, 30, 191, 298

Hoffmann, “Bogie,” 94

Holguin, Paula, 55

Holtoner, Gen. Stanley, 190, 297

Hoover, Herbert R., 30, 31

Hoover, Robert A. (“Bob”), 196

Howard, Ben O. (“Benny”), 65, 75

Humphries, Mrs. (author’s fourth grade teacher), 72

Inconel X, 224, 229, 262, 290, 320, 343

International Harvester Company, 245

International Geophysical Year, 267

International Livestock Show, Chicago, 78

Jansen, George, 48, 50, 140

JATO, 47-48, 139

Jingle, Joe, 351

Johnson, Louis, Secretary of Defense, 45

Johnson, Col. Richard, 40

Johnston, E. W. (“Bill”), 248

Johnsville Centrifuge, 271-272

Jones, Harold, 81

Jones, Walter P., 126

Kincheloe, Iven, 213-214, 216, 286, 304-305, 367, 396

Kindelberger, J. H. (“Dutch”), 210

Kingsville Naval Air Station, 93

Kirsten, Professor Frank K., 19

Kotcher, Ezra, 26, 158

Konrad, John, 49, 52

Korean War, 25, 45

Laird, Norman, 66

Lamb, Comdr. William, 104, 105

Langley, NACA laboratory, 26, 30, 32, 157, 283

Lathrop, Neil T., 190

Lauffer, Brian, 383

Lawrence Sperry Award, 210

Layne, Eddie, 46

LeBlonde (French mfg. company), 79

Le May, Gen. Curtis, 266

Le Vier, Anthony W. (“Tony”), 186

Lewshon, William T., 152

Lienesch, Charles (“Carl”), 64, 66, 76, 80

Lilly, Howard C., 30, 33, 47

Lindbergh, Charles A., 21, 24, 75

Lox (liquid oxygen), 160, 172, 201

Lunn, Rose E., 265

Mach number, 16, 33-34, 39, 48, 129, 137, 143, 158, 171-172, 177-178, 183, 186, 247, 269, 362, 371, 391, 395

Marshall, Gen. George C., 45

Martin, Ernest (“Ernie”), 242

Martin, John, 48

May, Gene, 33, 34, 48

McDonnell (aircraft company), 20, 283

McKay, John B. (“Jack”), 193, 201-202, 224

McNulty, Vaughn, 66

Meade, Mrs. (author’s second grade teacher), 72

Mellinger, George, 373

Mercury Astronauts, 243, 283

MIS (Man in Space) program, 267, 268, 277, 282

missiles: Bomarc, 356; medium- and long-range (Thor, Jupiter, Atlas, Titan), 27, 156, 187, 206, 228, 269; Nike, 356; Navaho, 268-269, 279, 281; Redstone, 157, 399; Regulus, 215; surface-to-surface (Atlas, Titan, Polaris), 357, 404; Vanguard, 399; V-2, 156

Moise, John W. (“Jack”), 173, 368

Murphy’s Law, 352, 368, 404

Murray, Maj. Arthur (“Kit”), 181, 182, 184, 201, 202-203, 207, 216, 241, 299, 367, 391

NACA High Speed Flight Station, 30, 191, 298

NACA testing laboratories: Ames, Calif. (Moffett Field, near San Francisco), 26; Lewis, Cleveland, Ohio, 26; Langley, Hampton, Va., 26, 30, 32, 157, 283

National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA), 26-28, 30-33, 38, 40, 45, 65, 136, 141, 152

National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), 283, 287

Nautilus submarine, 269

Naval Air Test Center, Patuxent River, Maryland, 105, 159

Naval Air Training Center, Corpus Christi, Texas, 91

Naval Air Training Center, Jacksonville, Florida, 99

Navy Aero-medical Acceleration Laboratory, Johnsville, Pa., 272

Newman, James (“Jim”), 172, 176

Nixon, Richard M., 303

North American Aviation, Inc., 204, 209, 247, 268, 312, 318, 334

Northrop, John K. (“Jack”), 40

“Nose Wheel Club,” 132

O’Sullivan, William J., 163

Owl, George A., Jr., 221, 229

Paymiller, Mrs. (author’s fifth-grade teacher), 63, 72

Payne, Richard E. (“Dick”), 128

Pearl Harbor, 86, 93, 247

Perkins, Oliver R. (“Perk”), 167, 168

Petersen, Lt. Comdr. Forrest S., (“Pete”), 287

“Phase Two” airplanes, 47

Popson, Maj. Raymond A., 155, 190

Post, Wiley, 237

_Press-Telegram_, newspaper of Long Beach, Calif., 66

pressure suit and equipment, 236-239, 240-242, 253, 258

“pressurized” cabin, 235

Project Mercury, 158, 283, 287

Puckett, Elvin V., 84

radiation disease, 274

Reaction Motors, Inc., 223

Reed, Elden, 78, 81, 84

Republic (aircraft corporation), 204, 205

reserve squadron VF-74, 109, 113-114, 118

Rice, Ray, 212, 246

Richardson, Capt. Ralph N., 314, 326, 334, 344, 373, 390

Richter, Donald M. (“Sam”), 300, 301, 309, 316, 331, 342, 363, 364, 365, 366, 379, 384, 386-387

Ridley, Capt. Jackie L. (“Jack”), 31, 127, 130, 146, 181, 190

Robinson, Raun, 226

Robinson, Russell E. (“Robby”), 310-311, 313

rocket engines, 46

rocket engine XLR-99, 223, 227, 233, 251, 281, 292-294, 301, 361, 399

Roosevelt, Theodore, 259

Rowan, Dr. E. J., 63

Russell, Jack, 160

Sand Point Naval Air Station, Seattle, Wash., 88

Satellites: Dyna-Soar, 287; Sputnik, 270, 280-283, 288, 302

Scott, Gen. Winfield, 56

Seeger, Oscar, 119, 123

Sellers, Capt. Wilbur (“Pete”), 125, 127, 190

“Semi-empirical Method of Obtaining Static and Dynamic Aerodynamic Parameters of Swept-back Wings Analyzed on a Basis of Plan Form,”--Crossfield’s master’s thesis, 122

Semone, Arthur (“Art”), 403

Sigma Xi, 121

Simons, Maj. David, 275

Smith, boot ensign, 104

Smith, George, 230-231

Smithsonian Institution, 31

sonic barrier, 23, 28, 30, 31, 47

Soucek, Rear Adm. Apollo, 168

Soule, Hartley, 26

“space suit,” 242

Sparks, Ralph (“Sparky”), 38, 40

speed of sound, 16, 21, 26

stability augmentation system (SAS), 193, 339

Stack, John, 26, 157

Stanley, Robert, 127, 137, 152

Stapp, Col. John Paul, 259

Staub, Blake, 313, 339

Storms, Harrison (“Stormy”), 205, 246-250, 252, 262, 267-270, 280 ff., 293, 311, 316, 326, 327, 330 ff., 342, 344, 349, 356, 359, 374, 375, 378, 384, 386, 393, 406

Strategic Air Command, 20, 21

“supersonic yaw,” 142, 160

Taft, William Howard, 57

“tail chase,” 95

Tau Beta Pi, 121

Taylor, James, 76, 373

Thach, Capt. John (“Jimmy”), 94

Thomas, Mrs. (author’s third grade teacher), 72

Thompson, Capt. Allen W., 190

Tucker, Charles E., 40

Turner, Roscoe, 65

twenty-mule teams, 29

Tymczyszyn, Joseph J., 20, 21, 121

Union Oil Refinery, Wilmington, Calif., 58, 76

University of Nebraska, 81

University of Washington, 19, 20, 80-81, 111, 119

Van Allen radiation belt, 275

Vensel, Joseph R. (“Joe”), 30, 31, 39, 44, 126, 153, 193, 198, 202, 203

Walker, Joseph A. (“Joe”), 126, 149, 154, 193, 200, 202, 286, 354, 359, 363, 368, 371, 372, 392-393, 405, 406

Walko, Frank, 152

Wallin, Mrs. (author’s kindergarten teacher), 72

Wedell, James (“Jimmy”), 65

weightlessness (zero G), 129, 164, 187, 276

Welch, George, 194

Weldon, Lt. Comdr. Harry, 238, 239, 241

White, Maj. Robert, 286, 305, 340, 354, 359, 364, 371, 381-383, 392, 397, 405, 406

Williams, Esther, 179

Williams, Walter C. (“Walt”), 28, 30-31, 38-39, 44, 52, 126, 138, 149, 153, 162, 169, 178, 199, 206-208, 213, 250, 251, 298, 305, 408

Wilrich, Louise, 78, 81, 84

Wilson, Charles E., Secretary of Defense, 270

Wilson, Woodrow, 26

wind-tunnel tests and data, 20, 33, 120, 163, 186, 211, 231, 248

wings: cantilever, 19, 20; delta, 32; straight, 32; swept, 32

Wolfe, Maj. Joseph E., 190

Woods, Robert, 26, 156, 157, 158

Yeager, Capt. Charles (“Chuck”), 23, 28, 32, 40-41, 47, 104, 125, 138, 149, 159, 162, 165, 180, 181, 198, 201, 207, 210, 215, 216, 221, 276, 299, 342, 367, 371

York, Sergeant, 104

Young, William (“Bill”), 78, 81, 84, 409

Ziegler, Jean L. (“Skip”), 146, 149, 151-152, 204, 299

Zimmerman, Charles H., 163

_This book was set in Futura and Caledonia types by Harry Sweetman Typesetting Corp. It was printed and bound at the press of The World Publishing Company. Typography and design are by Larry Kamp._

Transcriber’s Notes

Obvious typographical errors and punctuation errors have been silently corrected after careful comparison with other occurrences within the text and consultation of external sources. Some hyphens in words have been silently removed and some silently added when a predominant preference was found in the original book. Except for those changes noted below, original spellings in the text and inconsistent usage have been retained.

Page 173: “high-pressure propellents” replaced by “high-pressure propellants”.

Page 229: “add considerable” replaced by “add considerably”.

Page 258: “look of horrow” replaced by “look of horror”.

Page 293: “turned to on the” replaced by “turned to the”.

Page 397: “Project Mecury capsule” replaced by “Project Mercury capsule”.

Page 418: “Holtner, Gen. Stanley” replaced by “Holtoner, Gen. Stanley”.

Page 419: “Mach number, 15” replaced by “Mach number, 16”.

Page 419: “near San” replaced by “near San Francisco), 26”.

Page 420: “speed of sound, 15” replaced by “speed of sound, 16”.

Three consecutive pictures in the second photo insert shared the same caption (“Clips from the horror film. NAA photos.”) in the original text. The caption “Clip from the horror film. NAA photo.” has been added to all three pictures for clarity. Italicized text is surrounded by underscores: _italics_.

New original cover art included with this eBook is granted to the public domain.