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Pilot Neil Armstrong and X-15 #1 Main Content
NASA Center: Dryden Flight Research Center
Image # : E60-6286
Date : 01/01/1960

Title

Pilot Neil Armstrong and X-15 #1

Full Description

Dryden pilot Neil Armstrong is seen here next to the X-15 ship #1 (56-6670) after a research flight. The X-15 was a rocket-powered aircraft 50 feet long with a wingspan of 22 feet. It was a missile-shaped vehicle with an unusual wedge-shaped vertical tail, thin stubby wings, and unique side fairings that extended along the side of the fuselage. The X-15 was flown over a period of nearly 10 years, from June 1959 to October 1968. It set the world's unofficial speed and altitude records. Information gained from the highly successful X-15 program contributed to the development of the Mercury, Gemini, and Apollo manned spaceflight programs, and also the Space Shuttle program. The X-15s made a total of 199 flights, and were manufactured by North American Aviation. X-15-1, serial number 56-6670, is now located at the National Air and Space Museum, Washington DC. North American X-15A- 2, serial number 56-6671, is at the United States Air Force Museum, Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio. X-15-3, serial number 56-6672, crashed on November 15, 1967, resulting in the death of Major Michael J. Adams.

Keywords

North American Aviation X-15 Neil Armstrong NASA Flight Research Center

Subject Category

Top 20 Dryden Aircraft, X-Series Aircraft, Astronauts,

Reference Numbers

  • Center: DFRC
  • Center Number: E60-6286
  • GRIN DataBase Number: GPN-2000-000121

Source Information

  • Creator/Photographer: NASA
  • Original Source: DIGITAL

Image Information ( Copyright Notification )

ResolutionFormatWidth
(Pixels)		Height
(Pixels)		Size
(KBytes)
Thumbnail .jpg 90 71 10
Small .jpg 640 502 181
Medium .jpg 1500 1176 886
Large .jpg 3000 2352 3,696

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