 Proudly, we hail. New York City, where the American stage begins. Here is another program with a cast of outstanding players. Public service time has been made available by this station to bring you this story as Proudly, we hail the United States Air Force. Our presentation is entitled, The Flight of the Aerobe. This is a story of development, the development and research which the Air Force is carrying on today, which will make flying, both military and civilian, safer and faster today and in the future. It's an exciting story in terms of scientific progress, and our first hack curtain 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. Graduate as a second lieutenant, earning more than $5,000 a year. Here is 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 nearest Air Force base or your nearest Air Force recruiting station for complete details. And now your United States Air Force presents the Proudly, we hail production, The Flight of the Aerobe. Another cup of coffee, John? No, thanks. I drank enough coffee last week during finals to float a couple of battleships. Me too. Thank goodness that's over. Now all I have to worry about are the grades. Isn't it wonderful to graduate, get it all over with? It sure is. Now all we have to do is get jobs. Oh, I've got one already. You have? How wonderful, who with? The Air Force. I wanted to go on in the physiology research field, and particularly in high altitude research. So I applied to the one place I knew that was really doing it. Oh, of course. I hadn't thought of that. But the ROTC I've had here in college, you see before you is of this morning Second Lieutenant John Edward Forrest, United States Air Force. John, that's wonderful. I'll be going down a Holloman Air Force base in New Mexico. That's where all the high altitude experiments are carried on. Oh, it's simply terrific. When do you leave? In a few days. Well, let's not talk about that yet, huh? I'm going to hate it, in fact. Well, then you'd better have another cup of coffee after all, while we talk about other things. John, John, I don't know what I'm going to do without you. I'll miss you too, Jean. More than you know. Now, you promised to write. You won't forget, will you? I don't know. I might be able to get off a note now, wouldn't I? Well, you'd better. Especially since I've seen you in your uniform. You look pretty sharp, you know. You think so? Best-looking Lieutenant in the Air Force. Flight 347 for Omaha, Salt Lake City, Denver, and Albuquerque, now leaving at gate number three. I guess this is it, isn't it? I guess so. I guess you better go. Got cold feet all of a sudden. That's silly. All right. Besides, you promised to come back up at Christmas. That isn't so long. Three months? It'll fly by. You'll be doing the kind of work you want to do. You'll be so busy you won't know the time is gone. Before you know it, you'll be back. All I can say is, you're wonderful. I'm Lieutenant Forrest. Colonel Walker is expecting you right through that door, sir. Oh, thank you. Good morning. You're Forrest? Yes, sir. Sit down, Lieutenant. Thank you. I asked you to stop in here before you go down to the lab because I thought you might like a little briefing before you begin work. Yes, sir, I would. Well, as you may have noticed, we've got a sort of three-ring circus going on here. And incidentally, may I say we're certainly glad to see you. You have an excellent background. Getting qualified personnel is one of our biggest problems. We've got more projects going than we have people to work on them. Well, I was certainly surprised at the size of the base, sir. I never expected anything like it. And you probably haven't seen a quarter of it. Certainly none of the launching platforms or the firing range. No, sir. I gathered that they're pretty spread out all over the desert for safety considerations. Right. Now, as a research physiologist, you'll be working directly with Captain Breswick. I see. Your work will be concerned with the data we're compiling on the physiological effects of high altitude on ejection capsules. Our experiments thus far have been most encouraging using mice and monkeys as test animals. If I may say so, sir, that was my primary interest in college. Good. However, before you go down and meet Chuck Breswick, I want to give you a little background, the whole purpose of this operation we have here at Holman. We people in the Air Research and Development Command are equipped with just about everything we need, except a crystal ball. And if we could just get a hold of a few of those, we'd be in good shape. What do you mean, sir? Well, just this. When an aircraft manufacturer builds a new model, very often this model is designed to reach hitherto unthought of altitudes or hitherto unattainable speeds. The designers at the drawing board, however, are five to ten years behind ARDC. Well, in plain language, our job today is to decide what a designer ten years from today is going to dream up, and then be prepared to answer every problem arising from a plane that has yet to be thought of, flying higher and faster than planes have ever flown before. That sounds like a pretty big job, sir. It is. And it's a job that's never over, because as fast as we solve one problem, there's a new one before us. And, my gosh, those designers are getting pretty smart. Sometimes they nearly catch up with us. Is this what I'll be concerned with? Exactly. I see. As I said, we have a three-ring circus going on here, and after you're here a while, you'll probably get a chance to get around and see some of the other work. Oh, are you, Miss Jean Andrews? That's right. You must be the new lab technician. That's right. Oh, I got a letter for you. Oh, then you must be the mailman. Yeah, here in the hospital, I am, among other things. Oh, from Hollerman. It must be from... From your boyfriend, Miss Andrews? To your other duties include keeping track of everything that goes on around here and who gets mail from who. Sure. I'm the unofficial newspaper. Okay, strictly off the record. Yes, it is from my boyfriend. Good. Well, I'll see you. Okay. Dear Jean, I'm sorry I haven't had a chance to write before. I've been pretty busy getting settled down and organized. This is the most amazing place. Yesterday, my boss Chuck Breswick and I got free for a little while and he took me out to see some of the other things going on down here. We got in a Jeep and went out on the desert, where we soon came upon the weirdest looking thing you ever saw. What the heck is that thing over there? Wait till we get a little closer. It's just about to let loose. The smoke let loose is right. What is it? That's the rocket sled. Well, what's it for? Well, as you can see, it's sort of a sled on rails. Oh, those rails, by the way, are 3,600 feet long. It's for a variety of different things. You can test seed ejection devices, parachute brakes and aircraft components like tail sections. Originally, it was designed to launch some of the early guided missiles in target aircraft, but now it does just about everything. I thought components were tested in wind tunnels. Yeah, sometimes they are. But sometimes the sled is better and very often it's cheaper to us. It's been invaluable for deceleration tests. Look down there now. You see what they're doing? Uh, yes, I think so. It looks like they're taking a man down off it. Yeah, that's a dummy. Probably working out some problem in a new G suit. They always use dummies? Heck, no. Fastest speed ever attained by a ground vehicle was recorded here a few months back. The Colonel was riding the buggy that day. How fast was that? Not yet released, but it was over 1,000 miles per hour. I can tell you they're planning tests that will simulate bailouts at 1,800 miles per hour. Oh, that seems impossible. Oh, incidentally, this little gadget is really saving the taxpayers' money. In what way? Well, a few months ago, they were having trouble with a new missile. Second or two after the doggone thing was launched, a tail flutter would start and it nose over and crash. They couldn't find out why? No, no. They're developing such a narrow speed range, a free flight, they couldn't put the finger on the trouble. So they called in these track people. And? They went to work and designed a sled to carry the missile. Set up a telemetering device and photographic equipment along the length of the track. Then they'd just send it down the track at the precise speed at which they knew the flutter would develop. And with cameras photographing it from every angle and the other instruments recording the stress and strain of every inch of tail section, took only three trips. The contractor was able to locate the trouble, the missile was redesigned, and it was fine. Made several successful flights down the main range. I think I see what the Colonel meant when he said ARDC was ten years ahead of the designers. And that the only thing we lack here in the way of equipment is a crystal ball. My work here is equally interesting. But I'll save that for later and just tell you seriously, the strides in science I'm helping to make here are almost unbelievable. You are listening to the proudly-we-hail production The Flight of the Aerobie. We'll return in just a moment for the second act. Aircraft observers are now being trained by the United States Air Force for crew positions in the world's mightiest bombers, the B-36, B-47, and the B-52. Can you qualify? Well, if you're between 19 and 26 and a half, single and a high school graduate, see your aviation cadet project officer at the nearest United States Air Force recruiting station today. Wear the silver wings of your United States Air Force. You are listening to proudly-we-hail, and now we present the second act of The Flight of the Aerobie. Hey, John. Oh, yeah, what is it? Get your white coat off. Stop trying to look like a young doctor till there. I want you to take a ride with me. Oh, wait a second. I'm just finishing something up here. OK. Where are we going? I have to go out and check some things at the launching site. I want you to see our baby. A guided missile will be using to finish some of our experiments. Oh, you mean the Aerobie? Mm-hmm. And as much as we'll be firing next week, I'd like you to have a look at the platform and all that. Oh, I'm anxious to see it. Let me put Pat and Mike away. How are they doing? OK. They're doing fine. Just fine. Hey, what's that tower over there? Well, that's it. The launching tower. Our leaning tower of Holloman Air Force Base. And the slight angle at which it leans, I presume that must be to direct the course of the Aerobie in its flight, huh? Exactly. Now, this looks like a good place to park. I still can't get over what an ideal place this is geographically for testing missiles. Well, that's just why it was chosen. At the time Holloman was picked, there were several other Air Force bombing ranges considered, but they all had disadvantages. It's a perfect natural setting. The long desert corridor, the mountains on three sides. And desert sand makes spotting the missiles after they land much easier. But with the orange shoots, it'll bring them down contrasting against that white background. Hey, what's that white concrete building over there? Oh, that's the blockhouse. That's where we'll be next week when the firing takes place. And this trench leading to the tower? Come on. Communications cables go in there between the blockhouse and the launching platform. The firing mechanism is all contained in the blockhouse. Terrific blast that propels the rocket makes it necessary that everyone be sheltered during the takeoff. Of course, all the recording instruments are located in the blockhouse, too. Just how fast do these missiles travel? Well, the initial acceleration is 14 Gs. Yeah. Missiles clear the tower in a split second. We're closer now. You can see the three legs of the tower. You notice two of them are on a direct north-south line. The third and back there is mounted on a hydraulic cylinder. Oh, then the tilt can be adjusted. Why's that? It's a compensate for wind drift and the earth rotation. It can be adjusted between two degrees east and one degree west. Except for that, there's no means of guidance or control once the missile leaves the tower. Nope, not at all. No, we'll go through this gimp here. Sir, may I see your clearance? Yeah, sure. Here you are. Okay, sir. Lieutenant. Yeah, right here. Yes, sir. Now, the initial thrust is provided by the booster. Well, for how long? All just a few seconds. When that's burned up, the sustainer rocket and the air bay itself is fired. The booster and the vehicle are separated. Then what? About 33 seconds after firing, the sustainer engine has exhausted its propellants. By then, the air bay is ripping long at about 4,600 feet per second. It's passed 75,000 feet. And it starts to fall? No, not yet. It costs a zenith, which depends on the payload and the operation of the engine. They have gone as high as 81 miles. Over 400,000 feet. Right. At about 200,000, the tail cone is blown off automatically. Well, that would make the rocket unstable. Yeah, it begins to tumble around. It's ideal from our standpoint because that's exactly what an ejection capsule would do. And anyhow, then the rocket starts to slow up considerably. So it reaches zenith and begins the return trip still tumbling. Mm-hmm. It free-falls until it reaches 20,000 feet. Then the nose cone is blown off. Containing the instruments and whatever else it values inside. Right. And a parachute opens, one of those orange deals I was telling you about. Mm-hmm. And it falls gently to earth. Well, sometimes we use several shoots to slow it gradually before the main one bites in. Well, as you say, it's certainly an ideal thing from the standpoint of what we're doing, the problems of ejection capsules. Hey, what's over there? Oh, come on, I'll show you. That's our particular baby. All covered up and ready to go. There she is. It looks very similar to some of the V2 rockets I've seen pictures of. Yeah, that's her grandpa. She's quite a bit smaller. How long is she? 26 feet. Oh. Well, she's about 1,000 pounds. Most of that, of course, is propellant, piping, and power plant. Oh, this here, this is the nose section. Where are the instruments and the passengers right now? Passengers. Pat and Mike. Yeah. Well, I guess it won't be long until something like this, perhaps a little larger, will be carrying human passengers. Longer distances and higher altitudes. It's kind of fun to think about, huh? Well, I think I'll put in my reservation now for the moon. Say, I don't think you're a minute too soon. John? Over here, John. Hey, someone I want you to meet. Hi there. It's just on my way upstairs to get some chow. This is Lieutenant Forrest. John, do you? John, I want you to meet our bird dog, Jim Young. Hello. You say bird dog? That's right. I guess you must be new around there. Well, new and completely at sea. I've seen so many things around here the last few weeks that I thought existed only in Buck Rogers. I'm a bit confused. What do you do? Listen, I'm the most important guy on the base, to put it modestly. Okay, okay. Let me in on it. Well, you may recall, I think he's old enough. Back in the old days, people used to fly around in something... Let me see. I think they called it... Oh, I got it. A helicopter. Not a helicopter. Yeah, yeah. Of course you have to go back quite a ways. I'm something of a curiosity around here. Sort of like seeing a Bronisaur in a zoo, you might say. Raise an airplane pilot anyhow. Of course, that brings us to what the heck a helicopter is doing around high pressure stratosphere explorers, but believe me, you couldn't get along without me. You know we couldn't at that? See, after you guys are all through shooting off your pop guns, and after you've made all your recordings, gathered all your data, you have to recover your little play things, and that's where the old bird dog comes in. I find it for you. You're one of the search aircraft people, huh? That's right. Gee, what fame. He's heard of me, huh? Sure. As a matter of fact, very good things. They tell me you can smell them out even if they've bored their way into the desert floor. Oh, yeah. We get a nose test, like an eye test before we get into this kind of... Enough of this shop talk. Hey, waiter. Waiter, another round here. Good morning, Miss Andrews. Got another letter for you from New Mexico. Hello. Thank you very much. Ah, these are the ones I like to bring. Well, gotta get going. Selon. Bye. Dear Jean, things here are curiouser and curiouser, as Alice said. And sometimes I think I'm in a supersonic... Wonderland. I'll tell you about my new girl, and she has a brother, Mike. Don't get excited, though, because she's only a year old, and she's a synomalgous monkey. I've already written about the launching site in Arabic, so just visualize us out here. It's five o'clock in the morning, and Chuck and I unload Pat and Mike from the crates, in which their nestles still half asleep. Well, you aren't gonna remember this very well, Mike, old man. After that slight Mickey we've given you. Boy, your uncle John and I sure will. I think they're in good shape. Yeah, I seem so. You got the catheters for the blood pressure ready? Yeah, right here. Okay, Mike. There you go. There. Now we'll lay you down. Snugging your foam rubber crash bed? That's already two. Now to take you out to the buggy for your little ride. What time do you have, John? Five after six. Blood pressure readings coming in fine. Ditto, the electrocriograph from Miss Pat. They're both safely ensconced in the passenger compartment of the Arabic. I guess this is it. Right. I'll give the word to the firing officer. Okay, for sound, Joe. And then something happened that reminded me of what a rocket technician told me the day I arrived. In this business you've either just had troubles or having troubles. You're about to have troubles. The simple igniter for the booster, which isn't so simple but I won't go into it here, fell for the first time in dozens of firings. It took three hours and three false starts before the trouble was tracked down. And there was nothing we could do about it but sit there in that concrete blockhouse with the temperature steadily rising and wish we were somewhere else. In addition... Hey. Hey, John, look here. What is it? I don't like this blood pressure reading. What do you think? It's certainly deteriorated. Boy, is it hot. Well, what do you think? Well, I don't know what to say. I'd like to... Captain Breswick. Yeah? Captain Ford says if you're ready to go, he is. Gee, I'd like to take a look at Mike before we fire up. I don't like the looks of this pressure. Captain Ford told me to tell you we better get the show on the road. The weather's clamoring up but good right now. In a couple of days, it'll get worse. And so reluctantly Chuck gave his OK on the firing order. The loudspeakers started the countdown for the fourth time today and everyone had his fingers crossed. Seven, six, five, four, three, two, one. Pat and Mike. Though they weigh only six pounds apiece, press down with that first takeoff boost this is the weighing 80 pounds. Three quarters of a minute later. Well, they must be hitting about 64,000 feet right now. And traveling, if I remember correctly, at about 2,000 miles per hour. Hmm. The blood pressure looks OK now. Oh, Stephen. Registering just fine. At least the takeoff didn't jar anything loose. I'm going to check with the upper-range receiving station on the rest of the instruments. Site one, site one. Come in, site one. Site one here. This is Main Street for a checkout. Right, sir. Temperature gauge. OK, sir. Pressure. Normal. Acceleration. As scheduled. Centrifugal forces. OK, sir. Roger. OK, boy, keep your fingers crossed. I think everything's going too good. How's the pulse? Perfect. Look here. Mike's blood pressure is beginning to weaken again. Yeah. Yeah, so it is. Well, there's nothing we can do. And that was so true. We had no idea what had caused it and, of course, no way of finding out until a capsule returned to Earth. But steadily and surely, Mike's blood pressure grew lower. Three minutes after takeoff. Site four calling Main Street. Site four here. Come in, please, Main Street. Main Street here. First parachute open, Main Street. Altitude reading. 211,483 feet. Roger. Let's take a look at that pressure again. Contrast to the proceeding two-minute weightless free-fall state that had followed exhaustion of the fuel, Pat and Mike's weight began to build up. As the first parachute bit into the atmosphere, the two monkeys were pressed more and more firmly into their harnesses until they weighed about 30 pounds apiece. This eased off as they reached a steady falling speed. Finally, a mere four miles above the desert. Site four calling Main Street. Come in, please, Main Street. Main Street here. Main parachute just opened, sir. Roger. How's Mike's pressure, John? Not so good. Lower all the time. I just can't understand it. But again, there was nothing we could do. 16 minutes after launching, and I know it seemed like 16 hours to chuck in me, the capsule landed on the desert floor, and now the job was up to our bird dog, Jim Young. Chuck and I had a Jeep standing by so we could hurry out as soon as we got the word from Jim and the chopper. Get that capsule open. Why, he's all right. What a story he could tell, huh? What happened? Just a minute. It's only a clot in the catheter. His blood pressure's perfect. Well, Mike, one of these days there'll be a human riding in a contraption, something like this one. When it comes, it'll be thanks to you, young man. We've been almost a week now compiling the results. And of course, even now, they're only partial. But we think they look pretty good. The oxygen and dehumidifying apparatus maintain sea-level conditions throughout the flight. The opening of the parachutes impose no undue shocks that we could observe. And best of all, Pat and Mike appear to be much the same as before, both physically and psychologically. The aims for the future? Among them, a robot rocket that can be fired into a stratosphere and orbit it around the Earth. With it, we can learn even more of the hazards awaiting man in space. On Jane, speaking for the future, Christmas is such a long time away. How about it? Chuck tells me he's an expert best man. And we need lab technicians down here in the worst sort of way. And how about next week? I'm almost sure I can wangle a couple of days for a honeymoon. What do you think? For the young man looking to his future, there's a place today in the Air Force as an aviation cadet. Climb the skies in a powerful jet. Be one of the best-trained, best-equipped young men in the world. A pilot in your United States Air Force. If you're between 19 and 26 and a half, single, and can meet the other high standards, check at your local Air Force recruiting station and get all the details right away. This has been another program on proudly-rehealed, presented transcribed in cooperation with this station. Proudly We Hail is produced by the Recruiting Publicity Center for the United States Air Force Recruiting Service. This is Mark Hamilton speaking, inviting you to tune in this same station next week for another interesting story on Proudly We Hail.