weems.umass-cs%UDel-Relay@sri-unix.UUCP (07/11/83)
From: Charles Weems <weems.umass-cs@UDel-Relay>
It wasn't the Dyna Soar that was shown breaking up in the openning scene
from the $6 million man -- According to the placard at the Smithsonian
Air and Space museum it was the M2-F2 lifting body. The crash occurred
on May 10, 1967 and was due to a control instability that was later cured
by the addition of a center tailfin to the M2-F3. Unlike the bionic TV
character, the test pilot actually suffered the loss of one eye. It goes on
to tell how the M2 program proved that wingless craft could operate at
subsonic, transonic and supersonic speeds, paving the way for the shuttle
design.
chip weems
P.S. How about giving that test pilot a ride on the shuttle?