| "Neil A. Armstrong" served as a Naval Aviator from 1949 to 1952, after which he joined NACA Lewis Research Center as an Engineer, beginning a 17 year career with that agency and it’s successor, NASA. While serving as a test pilot at Edwards AFB, he made 7 flights in the X-15 rocket research aircraft, achieving an altitude of 207,000 feet. The X-15 was the primary research aircraft which facilitated the design and construction of the Space Shuttle. The X-15 ultimately achieved speeds in excess of Mach 6 and altitudes in excess of 70 miles. Much of its remarkable career was overshadowed by the space race to the moon. Armstrong was selected as an Astronaut in 1962. He was the first to dock two spacecraft (Gemini 8) and the first man to walk on the moon (Apollo 11). |