Real Test Pilots



Zero Gravity





First Crash Test Dummy



630 MPH in 2000 feet. 46.2-G's



Anybody else remember the X-15 ?

We used to visit people out near Edwards AFB and could hear and see the planes land at the dry lake.



Damage after the flight.
Worlds fastest manned aircraft until the shuttle.



Jim

 

Interesting stuff Jim, thanks.

 

VERY interesting. Thanks!

 

I remember all that stuff when it was happening, pretty cool time if you love Aviation as I do. Of course every contrail we saw was the X-15

 

Love that stuff. Wish I had kept all my model rockets and airplanes. One of my hero's was Joseph Kittinger (I met him when I was a kid).

 

Dr. Stapp was a very modest man concerning his exploits......he never played the "macho" man.....We need more like he was.

 

Back in the 50's and 60's I followed rocket travel and technology from its early beginnings, I still remember watching all of the launches and thought that was the greatest thing in the world, I like all of the old WW-II aircraft in its simplicity, I lived through the Cold War with all of the Air Raids and bomb shelters and had relatives at the DEW Line. Most of the people never knew we had missile silos loaded with ICBMs only miles from our house with most of them being supposedly now abandoned. Our family attended many military air shows at Miramar NAS, Point Magu, March Field, El Toro, and Edwards AFB,

I liked all of the big shiny bombers and interceptors of the cold war era and have seen the B-52, B-36, B-58 and B-70 fly by.

When I was younger I was way to advanced for my age, while other kids were playing sports, I was building model rockets and making my own propellants, building timing circuits and listening to shortwave radio.

My mom would take us to Ontario Airport where we would stand and watch the F-4's from the Air National Guard take off and land every 20-30 minuets.

If you have ever watched the original War of the Worlds the landed nearby in the San Gabriel Mountains and in the Puente Hills which is where I grew up, but I don't remember seeing them.

Recently when I was in North Hollywood I checked out one of the last standing Chrysler Air Raid Sirens

The kids of today have no clue what went on in the 60's

I used to build my own receivers and knew how they worked today if you asked someone how they get the music out of an Mp3 player they wouldn't have a clue.

Lary Ellis (Top)
I remember all that stuff when it was happening, pretty cool time if you love Aviation as I do. Of course every contrail we saw was the X-15

Did you ever sit outside at night and watch Sputnik and Mutnik tumble by?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sputnik_1

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Russian_space_dogs

Jim

 

Only time I ever heard my Grandmother curse was when Sputnik was going over.