At the Edge of Space: X-15 Flight Program - Hardcover

Thompson, Milton O.

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1853104167 ISBN 13: 9781853104169

Publisher: Airlife Publishing Ltd, 1993

Synopsis

In At the Edge of Space, Milton O. Thompson, a pilot active in the X-15 program from beginning to end, tells the dramatic story of one of the most successful research aircraft ever flown.

About this title

Review

Thompson brings the era to life, describing the triumph and tragedy of the pilots and technicians that worked on perhaps the countrys most ambitious Xplane testing program. --Sky & Telescope

Thompson is especially strong in describing the human dimension of the X-15 effort, enlivening the narrative with both heroic and humorous anecdotes. --Air Power History

Couldnt put it down. --U.S. Naval Institute Proceedings

Synopsis

In this book, Milton O. Thompson, a pilot active in the X-15 programme from beginning to end, tells the story of one of the most successful research aircraft ever flown. Initiated in the 1950s by the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (later NASA), the U.S. Air Force, and the Navy, the X-15 programme tested the survivability of rocket-powered aircraft at hypersonic speeds and at the outermost limits of the earth's atmosphere. Nine phases of the programme tested engine capabilities, altitude and speed capacity, and pilot ability, as well as experiments unrelated to the aircraft itself. Achieving hypersonic speeds, the X-15 aircraft also yielded design and materials data integral to the subsequent Apollo and space shuttle missions. The book includes profiles of the 12 test pilots (Neil Armstrong, Joe Engle, Scott Crossfield, and the author among them) chosen for the programme.

Edition details

• Publisher: Airlife Publishing Ltd
• Publication date: 1993
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1853104167
• ISBN 13: 9781853104169
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 375