# NASA X-15 ROCKET PLANE RETROSPECTIVE 1960-1980 U.S.A.F. ASTRONAUTS 30974

This color film provides an overview of the X-15 from 1960 to 1980, predating Astronaut Joe Engle as Commander of the second orbital test flight of the Space Shuttle Columbia on November 12, 1981. The film opens with a view of the X-15 #3 plane dropping from a B-52 (:33). A photo of 6 of its 12 pilots is shown (:36), with an up-close shot of William Dana (:38), Milton Thompson (:41), William Knight (:43), John McKay (:46), Joe Engle (:48), and Robert Rushworth (:50). These test pilots flew the rocket-powered X-15 research airplane for nine years and 199 flights before the program ended (:53- 1:04 ). An X-15 hangs in the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum ( 1:05 - 1:20 ). Pilot Joe Engle explains the wing design and structure of titanium, Inconel X, and stainless steel that could withstand temperatures of 1,200 degrees F ( 1:21 - 1:36 ). A pilot boards the X-15, already attached to a B-52 ( 1:37 - 1:44 ). The control tower is shown, as is a ground crew member, before the pair takes off ( 1:45 - 2:07 ). The high heat required an extra surface protectant to be applied ( 2:08 - 2:21 ). A view of the XLR-99 engine is shown in flight, which was fueled by anhydrous ammonia and liquid oxygen, as well as pressurized helium and hydrogen peroxide carried in the fuselage ( 2:22 - 2:56 ). The X-15 is released and travels at a speed of 4,000 mph ( 2:57 - 3:30 ), proving man could fly at hypersonic speeds. This paved the way for the space shuttle with many controls such as landing…

- Kind: Film
- Genres: Space, Industrial and advertising
- Archive: [Internet Archive](https://archive.org/details/30974NASATheX151960To1980Vwr)
- Licence or status: none stated by the archive
- Who can watch: Tweens profiles and older (the archive gives no rating; placed by Invisible Network from its collection and subjects)

[Watch now](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/watch/archive/ia/30974NASATheX151960To1980Vwr?play=1)