Operational History
In April 1960, seven astronauts were secretly chosen for the Dyna-Soar program:
- Neil Armstrong (NASA) 1960–1962
- Bill Dana (NASA) 1960–1962
- Henry C. Gordon (Air Force) 1960–1963
- Pete Knight (Air Force) 1960–1963
- Russell L. Rogers (Air Force) 1960–1963
- Milt Thompson (NASA) 1960–1963
- James W. Wood (Air Force) 1960–1963
Neil Armstrong and Bill Dana left the program in mid-1962.
On 19 September 1962, Albert Crews was added to the Dyna-Soar program and the names of the six remaining Dyna-Soar astronauts were announced to the public.
By the end of 1962, Dyna-Soar had been designated "X-20", the booster (to be used in the Dyna Soar I drop-tests) successfully fired, and the USAF had held an "unveiling" ceremony for the X-20 in Las Vegas.
Minnesota Honeywell Corporation completed flight tests on an inertia guidance sub-system for the X-20 project at Eglin Air Force Base, Florida, utilizing an NF-101B Voodoo by August 1963.
Read more about this topic: Boeing X-20 Dyna-Soar
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