Joseph A. Walker | |
|---|---|
_A._Walker_(7584804534)_(cropped).jpg) Walker in 1955 | |
| Born | Joseph Albert Walker (1921-02-20)February 20, 1921 Washington, Pennsylvania, U.S. |
| Died | June 8, 1966(1966-06-08) (aged 45) nearBarstow, California, U.S. |
| Alma mater | Washington and Jefferson College (BA, 1942) |
| Occupations | |
| Awards |   |
| Space career | |
| USAF /NASAastronaut | |
| Rank | .svg) Captain, United States Air Force |
Time in space | 22 minutes |
| Selection | 1958 USAF Man In Space Soonest |
| Missions | X-15 Flight 35,X-15 Flight 77,X-15 Flight 90,X-15 Flight 91 |
| Retirement | August 22, 1963 |
Joseph Albert Walker (February 20, 1921 – June 8, 1966) (Capt,USAF) was an AmericanWorld War IIpilot,experimental physicist,NASAtest pilot, andastronaut who was the first person to fly an airplane to space. He was one of twelve pilots who flew theNorth American X-15, an experimentalspaceplane jointly operated by the Air Force and NASA.
In 1961, Walker became the first human in themesosphere when pilotingFlight 35, and in 1963, Walker made three flights above 50 miles, thereby qualifying as an astronaut according tothe United States definition of the boundary ofspace. The latter two, X-15 Flights90 and91, also surpassed theKármán line, the internationally accepted boundary of 100 kilometers (62.14 miles). Making the latter flights immediately after the completion of theMercury andVostok programs, Walker became the first person to fly to space twice. He was the only X-15 pilot to fly above 100 km during the program.
Walker died ina group formation accident on June 8, 1966.
Born inWashington, Pennsylvania, Walker graduated fromTrinity High School in 1938. He earned hisBachelor of Arts degree inphysics fromWashington and Jefferson College in 1942, before entering the United States Army Air Forces. He was married and had four children.[1]
During World War II, Walker flew theLockheed P-38 Lightning fighter andF-5A Lightning photo aircraft (a modified P-38) on weatherreconnaissance flights. Walker earned theDistinguished Flying Cross once, awarded byGeneral Nathan Twining in July 1944, and theAir Medal with sevenoak leaf clusters.[citation needed]
.jpg)
After World War II, Walker separated from the Army Air Forces and joined theNational Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA)Aircraft Engine Research Laboratory inCleveland, Ohio, as an experimental physicist. While in Cleveland, Walker became a test pilot, and he conducted icing research in flight, as well as in the NACA icing wind tunnel. He transferred to the High-Speed Flight Research Station inEdwards, California, in 1951.[citation needed]
Walker served for 15 years at the Edwards Flight Research Facility – now called theNeil A. Armstrong Flight Research Center. By the mid-1950s, he was a Chief Research Pilot. Walker worked on several pioneering research projects. He flew in three versions of theBell X-1: the X-1#2 (two flights, first on August 27, 1951), X-1A (one flight), X-1E (21 flights). When Walker attempted a second flight in the X-1A on August 8, 1955, the rocket aircraft was damaged in an explosion just before being launched from theJTB-29A mothership. Walker was unhurt, though, and he climbed back into the mothership with the X-1A subsequently jettisoned.[citation needed]
Other research aircraft that he flew were theDouglas D-558-I Skystreak #3 (14 flights),Douglas D-558-II Skyrocket #2 (three flights), D-558-II #3 (two flights),Douglas X-3 Stiletto (20 flights),Northrop X-4 Bantam (two flights), andBell X-5 (78 flights).[citation needed]
Walker was the chief project pilot for the X-3 program. Walker reportedly considered the X-3 to be the worst airplane that he ever flew. In addition to research aircraft, Walker flew manychase planes during test flights of other aircraft, and he also flew in programs that involved theNorth American F-100 Super Sabre,McDonnell F-101 Voodoo,Convair F-102 Delta Dagger,Lockheed F-104 Starfighter andBoeing B-47 Stratojet.[citation needed]
.jpg)
In 1958, Walker was one of the pilots selected for the U.S. Air Force'sMan In Space Soonest (MISS) project, but that project never came to fruition. That same year, NACA became the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), and in 1960, Walker became the first NASA pilot to fly the X-15, and the second X-15 pilot, followingScott Crossfield, the manufacturer's test pilot. On his first X-15 flight, Walker did not realize how much power its rocket engines had, and he was crushed backward into the pilot's seat, screaming, "Oh, my God!". Then, a flight controller jokingly replied "Yes? You called?" Walker would go on to fly the X-15 25 times,[2] including the first flight of a human into themesosphere,Flight 35, and the only two flights that exceeded 100 kilometres (62 miles) in altitude,Flight 90 (on July 19, 1963: 106 km (66 mi)) andFlight 91 (on August 22, 1963: 108 km (67 mi)).
Walker was the first American civilian to make any spaceflight,[3] and the second civilian overall, preceded only by theSoviet Union'scosmonaut,Valentina Tereshkova[4] one month earlier. Flights 90 and 91 made Walker the first human to make multiple spaceflights according to theFAI definition of greater than 100 km (62 mi).[5][6][7] Flight 77 on January 17, 1963 also qualified Walker as an astronaut, according to the US Department of Defense definition of greater than 50 mi (80 km).[8][9]
Walker flew at his highest speed in the X-15A-1: 4,104 mph (6,605 km/h) (Mach 5.92) during Flight 59 on June 27, 1962 (the fastest flight in any of the three X-15s was about 4,520 mph (7,274 km/h) (Mach 6.7) during Flight 188 flown byWilliam J. Knight on October 3, 1967).[10]
Walker also became the first test pilot of the BellLunar Landing Research Vehicle (LLRV), which was used to develop piloting and operational techniques for lunar landings. On October 30, 1964, Walker took the LLRV on its maiden flight, reaching an altitude of about 10 ft and a total flight time of just under one minute.[11] He piloted 35 LLRV flights in total.Neil Armstrong later flew this craft many times in preparation for thespaceflight ofApollo 11 – the first human landing on the Moon – including crashing it once and barely escaping from it with his ejection seat.[12]
Walker was killed on June 8, 1966, when hisF-104N Starfighter chase aircraft collided with aNorth American XB-70 Valkyrie.[13] At an altitude of about 25,000 ft (7.6 km)[14] Walker's Starfighter was one of five aircraft in a tight group formation for aGeneral Electric publicity photo when his F-104 drifted into contact with the XB-70's right wingtip. The F-104 flipped over, and, rolling inverted, passed over the top of the XB-70, striking both its vertical stabilizers and its left wing in the process, and exploded, killing Walker.[N 2] The Valkyrie entered an uncontrollable spin and crashed into the ground north of Barstow, California, killing co-pilot Carl Cross. Its pilot,Alvin White, one of Walker's colleagues from the Man In Space Soonest program, ejected and was the sole survivor.
The USAF summary report of the accident investigation stated that, given the position of the F-104 relative to the XB-70, the F-104 pilot would not have been able to see the XB-70's wing, except by uncomfortably looking back over his left shoulder. The report stated that it was likely that Walker, piloting the F-104, maintained his position by looking at the fuselage of the XB-70, forward of his position.[16][17]
The F-104 was estimated to be 70 ft (20 m) to the side of, and 10 ft (3 m) below, the fuselage of the XB-70. The report concluded that from that position, without appropriate sight cues, Walker was unable to properly perceive his motion relative to the Valkyrie, leading to his aircraft drifting into contact with the XB-70's wing.[17][16]
The accident investigation also pointed to the wake vortex off the XB-70's right wingtip as the reason for the F-104's sudden roll over and into the bomber.[16] A sixth plane in the incident was a civilianLearjet 23 that held the photographer. Because the formation flight and photo were unauthorized, the careers of several Air Force colonels ended as a result of this aviation accident.[18][19][20]
Walker was a charter member and one of the first Fellows of theSociety of Experimental Test Pilots. He received theRobert J. Collier Trophy, theHarmon International Trophy for Aviators, theIven C. Kincheloe Award, theJohn J. Montgomery Award, and theOctave Chanute Award. His alma mater awarded him anHonorary Doctor of Aeronautical Sciences degree in 1961. He received theNASA Distinguished Service Medal in 1962. The National Pilots Association named him Pilot of the Year in 1963.[citation needed] In 1964, Walker was awarded the Golden Plate Award of theAmerican Academy of Achievement.[21]
Walker was inducted into theAerospace Walk of Honor in 1991,[22] and theInternational Space Hall of Fame in 1995.[23] Joe Walker Middle School inQuartz Hill, California, is named in his honor as well as theJoe Walker Elementary School in Washington, Pennsylvania.[24]
On August 23, 2005, NASA officially conferred on Walker hisAstronaut Wings, posthumously.[25]
Star Trek starship designerJohn Eaves created theWalker-class starships named for Joseph Walker that first appeared in the 2017 TV seriesStar Trek: Discovery, including USSShenzhou.[26]
| Operators |  | |
|---|---|---|
| Manufacturer | ||
| Pilots | ||
| Flights |
| |
| Related | ||
| Preceded by | Human altitude record Mar 1961 – Apr 1961 | Succeeded by |
