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.Itwasn t in bad shape, all things considered.Minor damage from ground impactmade it impractical to repair and use again.Since we needed to replace the fin,we used the opportunity to test a new material.Lockheed manufactured thenew fin out of a substance called Lockalloy.Short for Lockheed Alloy, itconsisted of 62 percent beryllium and 38 percent aluminum.In the meantime,we scheduled more flights for stability and control data to evaluate the YF-12 s directional stability without a ventral.Based on our data, the engineersconcluded that the ventral was not as critical to adequate directional stabilityas the designers had thought.This unanticipated test program providedworthwhile data and was typical of the way such efforts sometimes evolved atNASA FRC.Other Areas of InvestigationDuring the course of the YF-12 program, we conducted many types ofexperiments and investigations.One study sought to improve autopilot functionfor aircraft like the proposed supersonic transport (SST).We tested cockpitimprovements such as the presentation of inertial altitude rate and inertiallongitudinal acceleration on the pilot s instrument panel.This made it easierto fly precise propulsion test points.The engineers attached structural panelsof various materials to parts of the aircraft to evaluate heating and loads effects.On most flights, we also gathered medical information.The flight crews werealways wired with biomed sensors during test flights to provide physiologicaland biomedical research data on pilot workload and stress.Fitz and I both found that on certain missions, even though we had flownthe Blackbird recently and considered ourselves up to speed, we had difficultyestablishing our test points, and the time required to establish each point wasmuch longer than normal.NASA researchers who tracked the atmosphericdata taken during our flights discovered that we were encountering unstableair masses.On some days, the temperature at a given altitude varied a greatdeal over a relatively short period.These thermal variations changed the Machnumber of the aircraft, sometimes up to 0.1 Mach.We needed to fly our testpoints to within 0.05 Mach, so this phenomenon made difficult to establish atest point.On days when we had a stable atmosphere, the aircraft remained ata given Mach number for minutes at a time.As a pilot, I was greatly relievedto have an explanation for the problem.I think a good research engineer or198 Triple-Sonic Blackbirdpilot always wants an explanation and is never satisfied to accept a phenomenonas unknown.Fitz and I worked closely together and flew a lot of the same researchprograms at NASA for over 20 years.We certainly knew each other s flyingabilities and characteristics.We were a well oiled crew and good friends.Since we shared so many programs together, we also carpooled most of thoseyears.Over the span of my career, I have flown with many outstanding Navy,Air Force, and NASA pilots.I have always been reluctant to say that anyparticular one was the best, but I can t think of one that was better than Fitz.On top of all his flying talent, he was a fine Southern Gentleman with a super cool head. I know that I became a better pilot from flying programswith Fitz.It s like the golfer that becomes a better player when he plays withtougher competition.Fitz was tough competition, not that it was anything buta friendly rivalry.He was a tough act to follow, and he inspired me to strivefor excellence.He was also a good manager.On numerous occasions, I soughthis opinion and drew on his experience to assist me in my position as chiefpilot and deputy director of operations.Fitz and I occasionally socialized afterwork, but not as much as you might expect.I think that was due to our manyhours together at work, and the fact, that we both needed some away time athome.199 The Smell of Kerosene10A Time of TransitionThe End of an EraThe 1970s were a turbulent time.Many events remain etched in my memoryof that era.The moon flights continued to provide human drama as my oldfriend Fred Haise helped bring the damaged Apollo 13 spacecraft back to Earthafter a very dangerous mission.Apollo astronauts scored triumph after triumph,collecting scientific data until the final lunar journey in December 1972.Aformer U.S.president, old Give em Hell Harry Truman, died a week afterthe Apollo 17 crew splashed down.In 1971, FRC started a program to study a supercritical wing configurationthat would promote fuel conservation through improved aerodynamics.It waseventually incorporated into many civilian and military aircraft designs.Thefollowing year, we installed a digital fly-by-wire (DFBW) control system in amodified F-8C Crusader.DFBW controls are also now common in modernaircraft and spacecraft.In April 1973, NASA suffered its worst aircraft accident to date.SevenNASA and four contractor personnel died when the Convair CV-990 flyinglaboratory from Ames Research Center collided with a Navy P-3 on approachto Moffett Field near San Francisco.It was the same airplane I had flown forthe aurora research missions.Four of the five Navy P-3 crewmen also perished.The sole survivor was nearly killed by one of the fire trucks that responded tothe scene.On 31 October 1973, astronaut Ken Mattingly gave me a ride to Houstonin a T-38 so I could pick up a Bell 47G helicopter.The next day, I began a four-day journey back to Edwards in the tiny helicopter.The overall distance of myroute was about 1,500 miles.I made it in 25.5 flight hours with nine refuelingstops along the way.With an average ground speed of 52 miles per hour, I washappy when I could keep up with traffic on the highways.On 26 March 1976, NASA FRC became the NASA Hugh L.Dryden FlightResearch Center in honor of a pioneering aeronautical scientist and formerdirector of the NACA.A month later, the first Space Shuttle orbiter, named Enterprise, rolled out of the Rockwell International facility in Palmdale.Itsignaled a new approach to space flight, featuring a reusable vehicle thatlaunches like a rocket and lands like a conventional airplane.In the spring of 1977, the Office of Aeronautics and Space Technology(OAST) Research Council held a meeting to discuss upcoming programs.The200 A Time of TransitionCouncil consisted of all the center directors and some program managers fromNASA Headquarters.Our center director was playing political games to obtainwhat we called new start money for new programs.He offered to terminatethe Blackbird program, thinking that the other center directors who had interestsin the project would refuse this, thus giving him the new start money andallowing the YF-12 research to continue.The gamble backfired, and the Councildecided to phase out the Blackbirds by 1979.The decision was generallyunpopular and, in my opinion, very stupid.There were programs lined upwaiting for the aircraft through the mid-1980s.I never thought very much ofthat particular center director s management style.He was gone from NASADryden by the end of October, but the damage had been done.The YF-12research program ended with a final NASA flight on 31 October 1979.It isinteresting to note that in 1991, NASA Dryden began a research programinvolving several SR-71 Blackbirds
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