 Proudly, we hail from New York City where the American stage begins here is another program with a cast about standing place. Public service time has been made available by this station for your army and your Air Force to bring you this story as proudly we hail the United States Air Force. Experiments in space. This is the story of a project carried out in a new field of science. The field of space medicine created by the United States Air Force Medical Service. This project took Air Force men and machines on a dangerous and spectacular voyage into the upper atmosphere to the last frontier of flight. Our first actor will rise in just a moment but first young man if you're a high school graduate unmarried and otherwise qualified there's a future for you as an aviation cadet in the United States Air Force. You'll receive a year of the world's finest flying training and graduate as a second lieutenant earning more than $5,000 a year. Here's the opportunity of a lifetime to serve your country and build a career that will fit you for responsible positions in both military and commercial aviation. Visit your Army and Air Force recruiting station for details and now your army and your Air Force presents the proudly we hail production experiment in space. The plane you hear is a B-47 Stratoget. It's headed for the Aero Med Lab at the Wright Air Development Center at Dayton, Ohio. The two pilots of the controls, Major Clint Graves, 33, World War 2-8 in the front seat and First Lieutenant Bud Kytos, 24, a young jet fire in the rear seat are mystified by their new assignment to the Air Force Aero Medical Laboratory. They know very little about aviation medicine or the work being carried on at Wright Air Force base. As they cruise comfortably along, they're quiet, full of vague misgivings and uncertainties. Finally, Bud gives voice to his thoughts. You know, Clint, when I graduated into jets last year, I thought I was all through with school. What goes on at this laboratory, you know? Oh, they fool around with medicine, bioclimatology, physiology, things like that. They go. And what do they need me for? Well, maybe they want you for a new experiment to find out which has the most brains. Dodo birds or jet-jacking. Seriously, Clint, I don't like it. Our old outfit was the best in the Air Force. I'm gonna figure an angle to get back to it. Lay off the angles. Too many of them keep a guy from flying straight and level. Yeah, well, don't worry about me. Any place I want to get, boy, I get. Yeah, well, in that case, start calling the tower. There's Wright up ahead. Roger. Wright Tower, this is Air Force Jet 9-4-1-7. Request landing instructions. Hey, pretty good landing for an old veteran. You really greased her in. Oh, well, thank you, pal. After you open the door, hand me my crutches, and I'll crawl off to the old man's home. Yeah. So, this is the Arrow Med Lab, huh? All those beautiful nurses I hope to see. Clint! Clint Green! Hey, I got a calling here, Clint. Oh, it's a colonel. Doc! Well, I'll be... Doc Wright! Well, it's good to see you, Clint. It's been a long time, hasn't it? Not since Vee Day in Brussels, I guess. Oh, some celebration that was. A bud, meet my old flight surgeon, Monty Wright. I'm glad to know you, Colonel. How are you? Hey, Doc, you are a colonel at that. Night gone. Quite a coincidence running into you here. Well, it's not exactly a coincidence, Clint. I sent for you. You what? You sent for us, Colonel? But why, Doc? What do you need guys like us for? We're not medics or scientists. Well, sometimes we need flyers here as much as we need doctors or scientists. Well, why are we here? Well, I'd rather you knew a little more first about the kind of work we do at the lab. Then perhaps your project won't come as so much of a shock. Well, that sounds ominous. We're with you, Doc. Let's see the work. Here is the heaviest piece of equipment in our lab, the human centrifuge. The what? The centrifuge. It's a device for measuring the number of G-forces a man can stand. As a jet pilot, you know all about G-forces, don't you, Tyler? Roger. It's the weight of a pilot's body. Yes. A G is the unit of measurement we use to describe body weight under normal conditions. Now, the centrifuge here allows us to study the effects of great accelerations on the human body to simulate certain conditions in a high speed airplane. Depending on the revolutions per minute of this centrifuge, we can vary the G-forces acting on the subject. Well, Ted, this is Doc. How's the work? Now, the principle is really quite simple. That gondola over there is whirled around like a bucket on the end of a string. Just as a stone would be pinned on the bottom of the bucket, so a man in the centrifuge is pinned against the back of his seat. Well, brother, that thing's not for me. Now, you've climbed into many jet fighters where you undergo the same forces. That's what we use it for, to find out how much a man can take and still be safe. Our physiologists have found that men spun in the centrifuge can take up to 10 Gs and still move their arms and legs. Several of our experimenters have endured up to 17 Gs in the centrifuge without black outer redouts. Brother and I thought I'd been on some rough mission. Well, it isn't as bad as you think. Now, stand back and I'll show you the centrifuge in action. No, no, no, no, no. Don't ride in that thing on our account, Colonel. We believe you. No, no, this time it'll be a dry run. You all clear? Okay. Here she goes. At seven Gs now, at seven Gs, the blood is as heavy as liquid iron. Your blood would be as heavy as mercury. I don't think that's crazy merry-go-round. The consulate gets up to a speed of 173 miles per hour. We've discovered that when a man is lying in the prone position, the G forces act from back to chest and can more easily be tolerated. That's how you boys will pilot rockets someday. Rockets? Not just an old-fashioned jet pilot. You better start looking ahead, Titus. There's no doubt that aviation will eventually grow into space flight. At the lab here, we're just preparing for the inevitable. Doc, I had no idea aviation medicine included such spectacular stuff. Why, it's almost like science fiction. It's by no means science fiction, Glenn. And it's by no means also spectacular. Now, take the valuable work Lieutenant Meadows is doing down the hall. That's the side of it you should see too. Right down the hall here. What goes on here? Looks like something between a model kitchen and a chem lab. That's exactly what it is. Meadows is working on in-flight feeding problems where aircrews are sometimes kept aloft for long stretches of time. Oh, brother, look at that stake over there. If that's an example, they've come a long way from the K-rations we used to get on missions. Oh, yes. Meadows has helped us develop an entire line of in-flight foods that will do credit to any fine restaurant. Ah, Lieutenant Meadows. I was just describing your work to these gentlemen. I hope you don't mind. Indeed not, Colonel. Go right ahead. Oh, brother, talk about being spectacular. You're the most spectacular thing I've seen so far, Lieutenant. Well, thank you. But I'm just a playing garden variety specialist in the Air Force Medical Service. Well, I'm trying to interest my two friends in our work. Lieutenant Clare Meadows, Major Clint Graves, and Lieutenant Bud Titon. How do you do, Lieutenant? They've been assigned to us temporarily. It would be nice working with you permanently, Lieutenant. I'm very good at eating steak, if that interests you. Not in the least. You seem to me more like the type of pattern. Oh. You mustn't mind, Bud, Lieutenant. These supersonic boys try to talk as fast as they fly. Well, anyhow, we've interrupted Lieutenant Meadows long enough. Let's get on to my office, for I'll tell you about the T-1 suit. Yes. Will you say that again, please, Colonel? The T-1 suit. The most important project at the base right now. And the reason you men are here. As soon as I get this safe open, you'll have a look at it. So far, we've kept the T-1 pretty much under wraps. Uh-uh. Here she comes. This, gentlemen, is the T-1 suit. Oh, Doc, that does look like something a man from Mars would wear. Unless we've been on the wrong track, Clint, very shortly, it'll be standard Air Force equipment. For what, masquerade? No, no, nothing quite so bizarre. It's to be used for flying in the upper atmosphere. Up there, crews meet many of the same environmental hazards that exist in space. The T-1 is a pressure suit. You mean to be used in case of emergency, Doc? That's right, Clint. Today, engineers can build planes to penetrate the upper atmosphere. The only trouble is this fragile human frame of ours isn't adequate to man them. It's the job of aviation on medicine to keep human factors in place with the amazing progress of aircraft designers and engineers. That's why we're developing the T-1 suit. Colonel, I'm sorry, but as I said before, I'm just an old-fashioned jet pilot. I'm not even keeping pace with you. Well, let me put it this way, bud. You know that without protection, man will suffocate for lack of oxygen at high altitude. Yes, sir. Around 50,000 feet, the entire process of respiration comes to an end. Yes, sir, but what about pressurized cabins? They take care of all that, don't they? Well, they do. Well, what happens if the cabin becomes depressurized through an accident or enemy action? Well, it explodes at decompression. Right. That's why we've developed this T-1 suit. It's a vital piece of emergency equipment. If cabin pressure drops, the suit is built to inflate automatically. It forms a protective envelope of its own for the man inside it. Has anyone tried it yet, Doc? No. We're only approaching that final stage now. Tests with personnel. That's the job I want you to do for us. Well, why us? Because Clint here has the kind of all-around flying experience we need. Moreover, he majored in biophysics at college. Well, it sounds like interesting work, Doc. Wait a minute. Wait a minute. All I ever thought about, Colonel, in college was flying jets. Where do I fit in? As Clint's co-pilot, I assumed the two of you would make a good team. That and your difference in age, among other factors which we've checked, made the two of you seem to be excellent for the kind of experimental work that must be done. Well, frankly, sir, I'm not so sure I go for this deal. Oh, well, I guess orders are orders. Oh, no, no, no, but that's not the way I want it. Now that I've had the chance to explain the job to you in person, I want things on a voluntary basis. Some of the work might be dangerous. It deals largely with the unknown. The final decision is yours. You are listening to the proud to be hail production experiment in space. We'll return in just a moment for the second act. Daring and imagination, courage and science. These have propelled us straight into the jet age, the age of airspeed faster than sound, of flight into the farthest frontiers of the sky. Young man, how would you like to master one of those jet planes? Sleek, powerful aircraft which represent the last word in military aviation. They're considered safer to fly than the old propeller planes. If you qualify for and successfully complete the interesting, exacting training of an aviation cadet, you'll have the chance. As a pilot in the United States Air Force, practicing a challenging career in the service of your country, you'll start as a second lieutenant earning more than five thousand dollars a year. If you're between 19 and 26 and a half in good health, single and meet metal and educational requirements, you're eligible to apply for the 16 month flight training course. See if you can qualify at your nearest Air Force base or local United States Army and United States Air Force recruiting station. You are listening to proudly we hail and now we present the second act of experiment in space. Hey Clint, come on over. You know it's not a bad officer club, they got here right, pull up a chair and enjoy it. But you've been sitting on the back of your neck around here for two days. It's about time you told Doc whether you volunteered for the T1 project or not. All right, all right, don't rush me. I, uh, I spent the afternoon being briefed on the first test they're going to run on the suit in the altitude chamber, huh? You should have been there. Well, I never did like those overgrown pressure cookers, Clint. Nope, the T1 ain't for this fly boy. Oh, you were right when you called yourself just an old-fashioned jet pilot. These new ideas scare the doots out of you, don't they, bud? Oh, look, Clint, you're not going to get a rise out of me that way. I don't scare easy, but this, this screwy suit just isn't my meat. They're looking for you, Clint. Hey, can I see you a minute? Yes, sure thing, Doc. This is us, bud. I've asked Lieutenant Meadows to keep you company while I go over a few things with Clint. We won't be long. Oh, take your time, Colonel. Well, well, well, well, sit down, Lieutenant. It's a pleasure. Thank you. There you are. Well, you've been dropping any more fresh jet jockeys in the deep freeze over Julyab? I guess I did seem cold when we met, but you have to admit you were pretty brash. Well, if brash means being knocked into a flat spin, you're quite right, Lieutenant. There you go again, Lieutenant. Aren't you afraid that line of yours will flame out someday? Hey, hey, you're some gal. You dig jet jive, huh? Just enough to find my way around the flight line. You forget I'm in the Air Force, too. Oh, no, no, not for a minute. It gives us so much in common. Seriously, Lieutenant, I want to apologize for the stuffy way I treated you. I didn't realize you were one of Colonel Rice's volunteers. Oh, I admire the job you're doing. Oh, wait a minute. Well, I mean, you see, it's like this. What I mean is that... Now, Lieutenant, this modesty is unbecoming. Stay as brash as you are. Okay, Lieutenant. If you like me brash, that's what I'll be. How's about dinner tonight for a start? Oh, sorry. I have some important lab work to see. Oh, what about tomorrow night? More lab work. Well, when? Well, wait a minute, wait a minute. Is this a stall? Friday. And I'm really sorry. I can't make it sooner. All right, all right. Friday it is. And now, believe it or not, I have to get back to the lab. Now, wait a minute, Lieutenant. The Colonel ordered you to stay with me. Keep me company. I heard him. Uh-uh. Like you, I volunteered for the job. So long. So long. Hey, bud, what happened? You're losing your fatal grip? Where'd Claire go? Well, I know Claire. She went back to her lab. Yes, yes, that's right, Colonel. You know, people are sure busy around here. Now, Clint's told me you've decided the T1 isn't for you. Sorry you won't be here for our altitude chamber test on Friday. On Friday, huh? Well, who says I won't be here Friday? Colonel, I volunteer. What? Well, but what made you change your mind? Well, I'll tell you, Clint, I've got some important lab work of my own. Benson, you understand clearly how we want the altitude chamber operated on this experiment? Oh, yes, sir. Evacuate pressure up to 50,000 feet according to the Brookings graph. I have control of them all right in front of me. Time. Now, remember, boys, stay on intercom all the time. The automatic computers will figure most of the information for it. But let me stress one thing. Report immediately if you have even the slightest suspicion of some malfunction. Malfunction? I got a heavy date tonight. I'm going to be doing her a favor if you got deflated. Now, go on, get in. What's the rush? We've got reserve seats, haven't we? Any last-minute questions, Clint? Bud? Oh, sir. Oh, take her away, Doc. Good luck. Seal her up. Take it, Benson. Right, sir. Give me a lighted altitude of 23,000 feet, sir. Hold them there a minute, Benson. How's it going, boys? Be especially alert from now on. You'll be working in red-lined density. Stage two, Benson. Lighted altitude, 40,000 feet, sir. Hold it a minute, Benson. Clint, you're at Angel's 40. Roger, Doc. How about you, Bud? No complaints, sir. Stage three, Ben. Red level of moment, Benson. You're at 50,000 feet. We'd never know it. All the instruments check out perfectly on the board out here. And why stop at 50,000, Doc? Well, 50,000 feet is what we call the functional border of space. That's as far as respiration is concerned. We'll hold you there a couple of more minutes and then start repressurizing. Looks like some airpads blew. I can't have to depressurize slowly. Are your suits level to blow up, too? Never mind me. He needs help. How bad is he? I can't. Oh, what about you? It's too much of a chance. Will do. Benson, depressurize SOP complete. But Colonel, what about Clint? Graves thinks his suit can take it. The other man's time reserve is running out. Pull out the stops, Benson. Stage one. Yes, sir. 6,000 feet, sir. Not enough. Open her up. How's he look, Doc? Well, not too bad. The tubes that didn't blow out, save them. Not take it easy, but you'll be okay in a few minutes. Three of the tubes blew out in suit. Like the Lord, the other 12 held. That felt like a mule kicked me in the stomach. Hey, look. Here's how it happened. A valve clock. That was close, huh? I'm sorry. I couldn't do better for you, Doc. You found out something we had to know. Does that mean we have to start all over again, Doc? I should say not. No, we learned what we wanted to from the chamber. The next step is to redesign the valves according to what we learned today. Then we'll test the suit in flight. In the next few weeks, Clint and Bud put in long hours working with Colonel Rice on the suit. And Bud is doubly busy, because he's also courting Clara Meadows. The two pilots run more than a dozen tests on the suit. Most of them in flight. Between flights, Colonel Rice and his staff modify the suit, make infinitely small adjustments and readjustments, which are suggested by the reports of the two pilots and the mass of statistical information the instruments record. Finally, the Colonel is ready to order a full production model on the T1 suit. But first, there's one thing they must know. Can a man bail out in it at the functional border of space where no one has ever tried it before and survived? That's the big question. Then, one gray dawn, Clint Graves, Bud Titus, Colonel Rice, and a third pilot, Jake Evans, sit quietly in the ready room, taking pure oxygen, preparing for the big hop. That's enough oxygen, boys. Let me check over your suit once more, Bud. Yes, sir. I've been in the suit so much recently, Colonel, I ought to wear it for pajamas. Well, just stay wide awake this morning, but that's all I ask. Level off. One thing about it, there's no turbulence up here. Well, this is where I get off. Right, Colonel? Run over the checklist with Jake once again, Bud. Roger. Lotation gear. Check. Battery and radio. Check. Bail-off bottle. Check. DI regulator. That covers it. Any sign of decompression sickness, Bud? Not at all. Okay, then. We're ready to complete the test. Prepare for bail-off, and take good care of that oxygen bottle. Roger, Doc. And by the open bomb, Baklint. Yours, Bud. Proceed with bail-off. Bud leaps into space through the perpetual dark blue above 40,000 feet where the stars always shine and he's plummeted downward. Only the T1 suit stands between his earth-conditioned frame and sudden deaths in the outer regions of the atmosphere. Is it good enough? Falling. Falling. A free fall of 30,000 feet, the longest man has ever tried, and then the automatic shoot tears open. The pigs are squealing and grunting. I'm making just as much noise out of pure happiness. Well, man, you should have seen that farmer's face. He got one look at the old T1 suit and lit out of the place like he had a rocket booster in his hip pocket. Such a secret for me. Why, honey? Well, when a girl's fiance makes history, she should be told about it. That makes us even, Claire. He didn't breathe a word to me about this engagement party. Well, like I always said, Doc, Bud's just a shy, old-fashioned jet pilot. Well, anyway, congratulations, Bud. Every happiness to you, Bud. Thank you, Colonel. I guess you know by now how grateful I am you had me set here. For one thing, I never would have met Claire. Well, I'm grateful to you. You and Clint deserve as much credit as anyone for the success of the T1 suit. I just sent a telegram to Washington recommending production on the T1. If I make a formal model, I'll wear it to Bud's wedding. That's very apropos. Well, I hate to break up the party, but I must call it a night. Oh, Doc, don't go. It's still early. Now, not for me. Don't forget we in Space Medicine have a big job getting you pilot set for things to come. I have to be at work first thing tomorrow morning on a new project. The biggest yet. Young man, do you have a flair for scientific subjects, physics, mathematics, electricity, astronomy? As an aircraft observer in the United States Air Force, you would use your technical knowledge as a rated flying officer on an Air Force flying team in an interceptor, bomber, reconnaissance, or transport plane. You'd be trained to operate the latest in electronic and radar equipment. You'd be a member of a flying team trained in such skills as navigation, bombardment, radar interception, and others. You're eligible to apply if you're between 19 and 26 and a half single and have a high school diploma. If you pass written and physical entrance examination, you'll start on a 14 month intensive training course. Then graduation, aircraft observer wings, a commission as an Air Force Lieutenant earnings over $5,000 and an interesting assignment as flying officer in your United States Air Force. This has been another program on Proudly We Hail presented transcribed in cooperation with this station. Proudly We Hail is produced by the Recruiting Publicity Center for the United States Army and United States Air Force Recruiting Service. This is Kenneth Banghart speaking and inviting you to tune in the same station next week for another interesting story on Proudly We Hail.