AIR FORCE RESEARCH PILOT SCHOOL NF-104A STARFIGHTER EDWARDS AFB 45024

In 1962 the U.S. Air Force established the Research Pilot School at Edwards Air Force Base to train the next generation of pilots for space. This rare film from Lockheed, TRAINING FOR SPACE, shows the aerospace research pilot program and focuses on the creation of the NF-104A training aircraft. It was made prior to the actual use of the aircraft and before the famous Chuck Yeager accident (see below) depicted in the movie "The Right Stuff."
The most high tech training program of its era, pilots enrolled in the program would use flight simulators and aircraft to simulate various astronaut tasks and mission profiles. At 2:58, a reaction control simulator is seen -- simulating ballistic flight in space.
At 4:00, the F-104A Starfighter is seen, used to train pilots enrolled in the RPS. Three F-104A's aircraft were modified by Lockheed for their mission as Aerospace Trainers, known as the NF-104A. The Lockheed NF-104A was an American mixed power, high-performance, supersonic aerospace trainer that served as a low-cost astronaut training vehicle for the North American X-15 and projected Boeing X-20 Dyna-Soar programs.
At 7:00, rocket motors used with the NF-104A are seen being modeled on a test airframe. At 8:00, flight profiles are seen with the rocket engine and reaction control systems in use.
Three aircraft were modified from existing Lockheed F-104A airframes, and served with the Aerospace Research Pilots School between 1963 and 1971, the modifications included a small supplementary rocket engine and a reaction control system for flight in the upper atmosphere. During the test program, the maximum altitude reached was more than 120,000 feet (36,600 m). One of the aircraft was destroyed in an accident while being flown by Chuck Yeager. The accident was depicted in the book The Right Stuff and the film of the same name.
The Lockheed F-104 Starfighter was a single-engine, supersonic interceptor aircraft originally developed by Lockheed for the United States Air Force (USAF). One of the Century Series of fighter aircraft, it was operated by the air forces of more than a dozen nations from 1958 to 2004. Its design team was led by Kelly Johnson, who went on to lead or contribute to the development of the Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird and other Lockheed aircraft.
The U.S. Air Force Test Pilot School (USAF TPS) is the Air Force's advanced flight training school that trains experimental test pilots, flight test engineers, and flight test navigators to carry out tests and evaluations of new aerospace weapon systems and also other aircraft of the U.S. Air Force. This school was established on 9 September 1944 as the Flight Test Training Unit at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base (AFB) in Dayton, Ohio. To take advantage of the uncongested skies, usually superb flying weather, and the lack of developed zones in the event of crashing, the test pilot school was officially moved to its present location at Edwards Air Force Base in the northwestern Mojave Desert of Southern California on 4 February 1951.
The Test Pilot School was created to formalize and standardize test pilot training in order to reduce the high accident rate during the 1940s and increase the number of productive test flights. In response to the increasing complexity of aircraft and their electronic systems, the school added training programs for flight test engineers and flight test navigators. Between 1962 and 1972, the test pilot school included astronaut training for armed forces test pilots, but these classes were dropped when the U.S. Air Force manned spaceflight program was suspended. Class sizes have been uniformly quite small, with recent classes having about twenty students. The school is a component of the 412th Test Wing of the Air Force Materiel Command (AFMC).
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This film is part of the Periscope Film LLC archive, one of the largest historic military, transportation, and aviation stock footage collections in the USA. Entirely film backed, this material is available for licensing in 24p HD and 2k. For more information visit www.PeriscopeFi...

[@michaelmangano1732]

I’m loving Mike Collins hanging back in the classroom.

[@gregjames824]

me too, he looks like to only "real" student in the class, the rest look like they were just dragged in to fill the room

[@dukeford8893]

@@gregjames824 Well, that's X-15/Shuttle pilot Joe Engle in the orange flight suit in front of Collins.

[@ohwell2790]

I was a mechanic on the TB-58 Hustler at Edwards AFB in 1964-1966 chase for the XB-70 and always went over to the Star Fighters every chance I got. What a great time to be in flight test for a 19 year old straight out of tech school. Good times in the Air Force.

[@ADAPTATION7]

You were very young at the time. Such responsability at such a young age.

[@Thunder_6278]

Damn, what a cool plane, nice to know a few are still around to show us in the 21st century.

[@Kiowa1776]

My dad flew the F-104C, I still have his helmet and stirrups, the only 2 aircraft with stirrups was the F104 and the SR71....amazing

[@RickyJr46]

Can you imagine the tremendous satisfaction of being on the Skunk Works team, and having Clarence Kelly Johnson as your boss? What a great privilege that would be!

[@nonovyerbusiness9517]

Also in the back row at 1:43 is future astronaut Charles Bassett who with Elliott See, were the prime crew for Gemini 9. Both were killed when See crashed their T-38 into the same building where their spacecraft was being built by McDonnell aircraft at St. Louis Lambert Field airport. The crash occurred as See was trying to land in deteriorating weather conditions. I believe Collins, Bassett and White were in the same new astronaut group selected.

[@ultrametric9317]

White was in the 2nd group with Armstrong, Lovell, Borman, Conrad, McDivitt, Young, Stafford, and See.

[@bc1969214]

1:48 looks like the instructor is a Thunderbirds pilot.

[@brianwaskow5910]

At 3:36 Micheal Collins. Apollo 11 astronaut.

[@benhudman7911]

T-38 over in the background of a beautiful 104. T-38 still in the inventory doing it’s thing.

[@larry7124]

I see Astronaut Joe Engle, Mike Collins and Charles Bassett

[@HockeyMetalRPG]

Looks like Michael Collins and Edward White in the back row 1:32

[@bravodelta3083]

Almost certainly Michael Collins. Also seen at kzbin.info/www/bejne/iIjcfaBvfbl9r6M rear row to the right wearing green flight suit.

[@smeltedcheese]

And Chuck Yeager at 1:44

[@bravodelta3083]

Front extreme left? Wasn't 100% it was him, but I think you're right. kzbin.info/www/bejne/iIjcfaBvfbl9r6M

[@fggrimes]

That is actually Charlie Bassett at the 1min 44 sec and 3min 49 sec marks of the film. Bassett would be selected among the third group of NASA astronauts. Sadly, he'd perish along with would-be Gemini 9 crewmate Elliot See when their NASA Northrop T-38 crashed on February 28, 1966 into the roof of the McDonnell Aircraft building where Gemini spacecraft were produced. Another aviator and astronaut of note making a cameo in the film is X-15 and Space Shuttle astronaut Joe Engle (in orange flight suit) at the 3min 34 sec and 9min 28sec marks in the film.

[@bravodelta3083]

Interesting! Thanks for that :)

[@dusterowner9978]

Mike Collins in the back of the classroom .

[@daffidavit]

At 4:06 we see where Gene Roddenberry took the stock footage for the scene in "Tomorrow is Yesterday" Season 1 episode 20 on Netflix.

[@allgood6760]

F104 is a cool plane.. sleek and chic! 👍

[@LoganC1988]

4:08 got the ol' ticker going!

[@paulglock3298]

At 1:35, in the back row...that guy Mike Collins- he might hold some promise...

[@wallacethomas9844]

Ah, Mike Collins in the back row

[@DaylightDigital]

This is amazing, how did you even get this?

[@PeriscopeFilm]

What can we say -- we save films the government throws out!

[@gmaglio]

They gotta bring back the NF 104!!!

[@UAL012]

The F-104 was an ok plane but if you read General Chuck Yeager's book, he explained that those planes had a bad pitch up problem. When they added the rocket engine to the tail, it made it worse.

[@michaelclark9762]

@@UAL012 Yeager had to blame the aircraft, because he certainly wasn't going to blame himself. Others, who followed the prescribed zoom climb angle, flew the NF-104 both higher and landed it safely. Yeager wouldn't pull up to the required angle because he couldn't see the horizon. He may have well been the best stick and rudder pilot we ever had, but he didn't have the temperament to fly based on instruments when his gut told him to fly a different profile. That's why he lost the aircraft.

[@Airsally]

Been to the crash site, lot of little bits and beer cans from the airmen that cleaned up the big parts.

[@Mega12AX7]

Wow how do you soup up a 104..... Rockettes of course 😁 now THAT is Cool

[@daffidavit]

You must have been born in the fifties like me. Nobody uses the term "soup up" anymore. I think I heard it last when the Beach Boys wrote one of their sixties songs. It brings back lot's of memories. Thanks. But the last time I saw "Rockettes" was on Broadway in N.Y.C. at Christmas time. Just Joking. Be well.

[@Yosemite-George-61]

...would have been cool to have an orbital F-104... :-)

[@grahamwilson5835]

I wonder why the Narrator has a very slight Australian accent ?

[@phmwu7368]

Yeah boss, we need T-38 jets... in order to maintain proficiency

[@gmaglio]

Adam Sandler as Joe Engle!

[@ronjon7942]

A F -104

[@stockholm1752]

Elon Mu$k, Jeff Bozos, listen up.

[@airplanes42]

It's a shame Chuck Yeager ruined the program going for another record.