Milton Orville "Milt" Thompson, 4 May 1926 to 6 August 1993 (67 years)

X-15 Missions: 14 flights from 29 October 1963 to 25 August 1965

Highest Speed: Mach 5.48 (3,712 mph)xxxxxxxxxxHighest Altitude: 214,100 feet (40.5 miles)

Milton O. Thompson, National Aeronautics & Space Administration. X-15 Pilot no. 9.

Armstrong Flight Research Center

Thompson surrounded by Perry Row (right) and Herm Dorn (left) on 2 Oct. 1964.

NASA Headquarters

Armstrong welcomes Thompson to the X-15 pilot's office.

Sheri McKay Lowe collection

Armstrong, Thompson, Peterson, McKay, Butchart, Dana, and Walker.

Armstrong Flight Research Center

Edwards AFB air show 1964. On display is B-52 no. 003 with the X-15A-2 mounted to the pylon, along with X-15 no. 3 on the ground next to the mothership's right wing tip.

author's collection

Thompson made an emergency landing on Cuddeback Dry Lake on 21 May 1964.

Armstrong Flight Research Center

Thompson after his 7th flight with mission 3-34-55 on 3 Sep. 1964.

Armstrong Flight Research Center

Apparent composite photo that adds Pete Knight, Robert Rushworth, and

Joe Engle to the same photo shoot as seen in the photo at the left.

However, note the huge size difference in the two groups of pilots.

Armstrong Flight Research Center

Milt with Bill Dana and Jack McKay, posing in their pressure suits.

Armstrong Flight Research Center

Milt (2nd from right) at the NAA plant. X-15 Engineer Harry Shapiro is on the left.

Harry Shapiro

Milt at the controls of the "Iron Bird" X-15 simulator in the NASA Edwards hangar.

NASA Headquarters

Joe Engle, Milt Thompson, Robert Rushworth, Paul Bikle (head of the X-15 program), Pete Knight, and Jack McKay.

Hugh Bikle

Milt meets with Vice President Hubert Humphrey.

author's collection

All three X-15s undergoing maintenance in the NASA hangar at Edwards.

author's collection

Carrying the X-15 to altitude.

Armstrong Flight Research Center

B-52 no. 008 rolling down the taxiway at the start of another X-15 mission.

Armstrong Flight Research Center

View from the X-15 bug-eye camera immediately after drop and ignition.

NASA Headquarters

X-15 under power, soon after drop from the B-52.

NASA Headquarters

The moment of touchdown on Rogers Dry Lake.

NASA Headquarters

The mothership flys over in salute of a successful X-15 research flight.

Armstrong Flight Research Center

Two views of the X-15 immediately after landing. On the left the aircraft has just rolled to a stop on the lakebed, while on the right two men arrive to open the canopy for the pilot.

Armstrong Flight Research Center

The canopy is up and the person on the right is ready to hook up the pilot to the portable air conditioning unit that can be seen at his feet.

Armstrong Flight Research Center

The pilots joke around over who gets to be in the X-15.

Armstrong Flight Research Center

The B-52 mothership flies over the landing in salute to the X-15 and pilot.

Armstrong Flight Research Center

A fireman oversees the safety of the pilot and ground crew after a mission.

author's collection

— Milt Thompson flies the Lifting Bodies —

Thompson on 11 Nov. 1962 in what will be the M2-F1 cockpit

once construction of the plywood lifting body is completed.

Armstrong Flight Research Center

The M2-F1 with the 1963 Pontiac Catalina modified as a tow car.

Armstrong Flight Research Center

Aftermath of Bruce Peterson's 16th glide flight in the M2-F2 on 10 May 1967. Footage of the crash was made famous in the opening credits of "The Six Million Dollar Man."

Armstrong Flight Research Center

Thompson talks with reporters after first M2-F2 flight on 12 Jul. 1966.

Armstrong Flight Research Center

Thompson attempted to water ski on a very wet Rogers Dry Lake, but was thwarted. The original caption on this photo said "Oh, hell! Vensel won't care."

Armstrong Flight Research Center

Thompson in the M2-F2 cockpit after mating to the B-52's wing pylon.

Armstrong Flight Research Center

Milt Thompson and his wife Terri, just after Milt was selected to be on the Dyna-Soar pilot team.

author's collection

The Lifting Body Family: X-24A, M2-F3, and HL-10.

Armstrong Flight Research Center

The fiery reentry of the X-20 from space.

artwork by Aldo Spadoni

Thompson was a civilian pilot assigned to the X-20 Dyna-Soar research program.

Defense Audio Visual Agency

Rear view of the full-scale X-20 mockup at the Boeing facility in Seattle.

Boeing

The full-scale mockup of the X-20 Dyna-Soar.

author's collection

Liftoff of the B-52 with the X-15 under wing.

Armstrong Flight Research Center

Overhead shot of the B-52/X-15 with two chase planes.

author's collection

A wingtip camera captures the scene as the X-15 comes in on final approach.

NASA Headquarters

Gear down and locked.

NASA Headquarters

Gliding over the lakebed towards touchdown.

NASA Headquarters

Rolling to a stop.

NASA Headquarters

B-52 no. 003 taxis toward the runway for takeoff while the Piasecki H-21 Workhorse support helicopter hovers in the background.

Armstrong Flight Research Center

The H-21 supports an emergency landing at Cuddeback Dry Lake.

author's collection

Color portrait of the H-21 Workhorse used in support of the X-15 missions.

author's collection

Thompson with the X-15 no. 3 replica at Dryden Flight Research Center in 1993.

Armstrong Flight Research Center

B-52 pilots Fitz Fulton and Jack Allavie.

Ed Nice collection