DesertRat
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If you don't want to read the entire post and just want to see what the "teaser" is all about, scroll to the bottom.
For nearly seven decades, the men and women of Edwards AFB have been privileged to witness many of the most important milestones in aerospace history. This is the fourth in a monthly series that provides brief looks at some of the more important events in the rich history of the base.
September 1933 – At the direction of Lt Col Henry H. “Hap” Arnold (who went on to become the five-star commanding general of the U.S. Army Air Forces in WW II) a small contingent from March Field in Riverside, arrived to layout and maintain a bombing and gunnery range for the Army Air Corps. The Muroc Bombing and Gunnery Range was then manned by a small number of troops on detached duty from March commanded by 1st Lt Max R. Fennel. This event is recognized as the birth of Edwards Air Force Base.
18 September 1948 – Piloted by Convair’s Sam Shannon, the experimental XF-92A concept demonstrator completed its first flight. America’s first delta-wing aircraft incorporated another new innovation—a 100-percent hydraulically boosted and irreversible flight control system making the flight controls extremely sensitive which resulted in pilot-induced oscillations. Though it exhibited some very undesirable flight characteristics, the XF-92A paved the way for a family of delta-winged supersonic combat aircraft, including the F-102 Delta Dagger, F-106 Delta Dart, and the Mach 2 B-58 Hustler.
7 September 1956 - AFFTC test pilot Capt Iven C. Kincheloe became the first man to fly above 100,000 feet, as he piloted the rocket-powered Bell X-2 to an altitude of 126,200 feet. Though newspaper reporters were incorrect when they hailed him as "the first of the spacemen," he had, indeed, flown above 99% of the earth's atmosphere.
27 September 1956 - AFFTC test pilot Capt Milburn C. “Mel” Apt became the first man to exceed Mach 3, as he flew the rocket-powered Bell X-2 to a speed of 2,094 mph (Mach 3.2 at 65,000 feet). Unfortunately, the craft tumbled violently out of control (a victim of the recently discovered high-speed phenomenon of inertia coupling) while he was still above Mach 3 and, unable to recover from it, he was killed in the ensuing crash.
September 1961 – Famed aviator Jacqueline Cochran set four new world records for women while flying a Northrop T-38, including: average speed over a 500-kilometer closed course, 680.74 mph on the 7th; average speed over a 1,000-kilometer straight line course, 639.38 mph on the 8th; a closed course jet distance of 1,346.366 miles on the 15th; and a straight-line jet distance record of 1,492.4 miles on the 18th.
18 September 1962 – Veteran AFFTC test pilot Maj Fitzhugh L. “Fitz” Fulton piloted a Convair B-58 Hustler, carrying an 11,023-pound payload, to an altitude record of 85,360.84 feet. The flight earned Fulton and his two crewmembers the prestigious Harmon International Trophy.
21 September 1964 – Flown by North American’s Al White and the AFFTC’s Col Joe Cotton, the gargantuan delta-winged XB-70 Valkyrie made its first flight from AF Plant 42 in Palmdale to Edwards. Originally conceived as a strategic bomber with the ability to cruise at Mach 3 speeds and altitudes above 70,000 feet, it was doomed by the emergence of sophisticated surface-to-air missile systems which led to its cancellation even before it flew. It was principally used to conduct experimental high-speed research programs. With a max gross weight well in excess of 530,000 pounds, it was the largest and heaviest aircraft ever to exceed Mach 3.
13 September 1985 – AFFTC test pilot Maj Wilbert D. "Doug" Pearson pulled into a near-supersonic, 65-degree climb in a highly modified F-15A aptly nicknamed the Celestial Eagle. Flying an extraordinarily precise profile, he climbed through 38,000 feet and launched a 17-foot long, three-stage Vought ASM-135A anti-satellite (ASAT) missile toward a Solwind P78-1 satellite orbiting 340 miles overhead. In a feat that must be compared to “finding a needle in a haystack,” the missile’s kinetic-kill warhead scored a direct hit. It was a first in history and a technological display which may never again be duplicated.
29 September 1990 – Piloted by Lockheed’s Dave Ferguson, the first YF-22A completed its first flight from AF Plant 42 to Edwards where it would be pitted against Northrop’s YF-23A in a Demonstration/Validation (DEM/VAL) flight comparison program to help select the Air Force’s Advanced Tactical Fighter.
15 September 1991 – Flown by McDonnell Douglas’ Bill Casey and the AFFTC’s Lt Col George London, the C-17 Globemaster III made its first flight from the company’s plant in Long Beach, CA, to Edwards. Designed to combine strategic and tactical airlift missions in one airframe, the C-17 was the largest short takeoff and landing (STOL) aircraft ever built.
18 September 2000 – Piloted by Fred Knox, the Boeing X-32 multi-role fighter concept demonstrator landed at Edwards at the end of its first flight from the company’s facility at AF Plant 42. During a 10-month demonstration flight program, it would be compared with Lockheed Martin’s X-35 for selection as the multi-service and multi-national Joint Strike Fighter.
10 September 2003 – A B-2 test crew from the AFFTC successfully released a full load of 80 independently targeted Global Positioning System (GPS)-guided 500-pound GBU-38 Joint Direct Attack Munitions (JDAMs) against 80 different targets in a single pass over the Utah Test and Training Range and thereby achieved a remarkable milestone in the development of precision-guided weapons capabilities as all 80 JDAMs scored either direct hits or impacted within lethal range of their targets.
Courtesy of the AFFTC History Office
So, why did I say this was a teaser?
Well, due to the success of the inaugural event and by popular demand; I am now working on organizing the second annual So. Cal. "Great Steakout, Herf and Tour of Edwards AFB".
We are looking at dates in either early May or early June, 2011 for the event.
All further details as we move forward with the planning will be posted in the Herf section of CP so keep your eyes open for a post there!
Danny
For nearly seven decades, the men and women of Edwards AFB have been privileged to witness many of the most important milestones in aerospace history. This is the fourth in a monthly series that provides brief looks at some of the more important events in the rich history of the base.
September 1933 – At the direction of Lt Col Henry H. “Hap” Arnold (who went on to become the five-star commanding general of the U.S. Army Air Forces in WW II) a small contingent from March Field in Riverside, arrived to layout and maintain a bombing and gunnery range for the Army Air Corps. The Muroc Bombing and Gunnery Range was then manned by a small number of troops on detached duty from March commanded by 1st Lt Max R. Fennel. This event is recognized as the birth of Edwards Air Force Base.
18 September 1948 – Piloted by Convair’s Sam Shannon, the experimental XF-92A concept demonstrator completed its first flight. America’s first delta-wing aircraft incorporated another new innovation—a 100-percent hydraulically boosted and irreversible flight control system making the flight controls extremely sensitive which resulted in pilot-induced oscillations. Though it exhibited some very undesirable flight characteristics, the XF-92A paved the way for a family of delta-winged supersonic combat aircraft, including the F-102 Delta Dagger, F-106 Delta Dart, and the Mach 2 B-58 Hustler.
7 September 1956 - AFFTC test pilot Capt Iven C. Kincheloe became the first man to fly above 100,000 feet, as he piloted the rocket-powered Bell X-2 to an altitude of 126,200 feet. Though newspaper reporters were incorrect when they hailed him as "the first of the spacemen," he had, indeed, flown above 99% of the earth's atmosphere.
27 September 1956 - AFFTC test pilot Capt Milburn C. “Mel” Apt became the first man to exceed Mach 3, as he flew the rocket-powered Bell X-2 to a speed of 2,094 mph (Mach 3.2 at 65,000 feet). Unfortunately, the craft tumbled violently out of control (a victim of the recently discovered high-speed phenomenon of inertia coupling) while he was still above Mach 3 and, unable to recover from it, he was killed in the ensuing crash.
September 1961 – Famed aviator Jacqueline Cochran set four new world records for women while flying a Northrop T-38, including: average speed over a 500-kilometer closed course, 680.74 mph on the 7th; average speed over a 1,000-kilometer straight line course, 639.38 mph on the 8th; a closed course jet distance of 1,346.366 miles on the 15th; and a straight-line jet distance record of 1,492.4 miles on the 18th.
18 September 1962 – Veteran AFFTC test pilot Maj Fitzhugh L. “Fitz” Fulton piloted a Convair B-58 Hustler, carrying an 11,023-pound payload, to an altitude record of 85,360.84 feet. The flight earned Fulton and his two crewmembers the prestigious Harmon International Trophy.
21 September 1964 – Flown by North American’s Al White and the AFFTC’s Col Joe Cotton, the gargantuan delta-winged XB-70 Valkyrie made its first flight from AF Plant 42 in Palmdale to Edwards. Originally conceived as a strategic bomber with the ability to cruise at Mach 3 speeds and altitudes above 70,000 feet, it was doomed by the emergence of sophisticated surface-to-air missile systems which led to its cancellation even before it flew. It was principally used to conduct experimental high-speed research programs. With a max gross weight well in excess of 530,000 pounds, it was the largest and heaviest aircraft ever to exceed Mach 3.
13 September 1985 – AFFTC test pilot Maj Wilbert D. "Doug" Pearson pulled into a near-supersonic, 65-degree climb in a highly modified F-15A aptly nicknamed the Celestial Eagle. Flying an extraordinarily precise profile, he climbed through 38,000 feet and launched a 17-foot long, three-stage Vought ASM-135A anti-satellite (ASAT) missile toward a Solwind P78-1 satellite orbiting 340 miles overhead. In a feat that must be compared to “finding a needle in a haystack,” the missile’s kinetic-kill warhead scored a direct hit. It was a first in history and a technological display which may never again be duplicated.
29 September 1990 – Piloted by Lockheed’s Dave Ferguson, the first YF-22A completed its first flight from AF Plant 42 to Edwards where it would be pitted against Northrop’s YF-23A in a Demonstration/Validation (DEM/VAL) flight comparison program to help select the Air Force’s Advanced Tactical Fighter.
15 September 1991 – Flown by McDonnell Douglas’ Bill Casey and the AFFTC’s Lt Col George London, the C-17 Globemaster III made its first flight from the company’s plant in Long Beach, CA, to Edwards. Designed to combine strategic and tactical airlift missions in one airframe, the C-17 was the largest short takeoff and landing (STOL) aircraft ever built.
18 September 2000 – Piloted by Fred Knox, the Boeing X-32 multi-role fighter concept demonstrator landed at Edwards at the end of its first flight from the company’s facility at AF Plant 42. During a 10-month demonstration flight program, it would be compared with Lockheed Martin’s X-35 for selection as the multi-service and multi-national Joint Strike Fighter.
10 September 2003 – A B-2 test crew from the AFFTC successfully released a full load of 80 independently targeted Global Positioning System (GPS)-guided 500-pound GBU-38 Joint Direct Attack Munitions (JDAMs) against 80 different targets in a single pass over the Utah Test and Training Range and thereby achieved a remarkable milestone in the development of precision-guided weapons capabilities as all 80 JDAMs scored either direct hits or impacted within lethal range of their targets.
Courtesy of the AFFTC History Office
So, why did I say this was a teaser?
Well, due to the success of the inaugural event and by popular demand; I am now working on organizing the second annual So. Cal. "Great Steakout, Herf and Tour of Edwards AFB".
We are looking at dates in either early May or early June, 2011 for the event.
All further details as we move forward with the planning will be posted in the Herf section of CP so keep your eyes open for a post there!
Danny
