May 18 1970
From The Space Library
NASA announced appointment of Astronaut Neil A. Armstrong, Apollo 11 commander, as NASA Deputy Associate Administrator for Aeronautics, Office of Advanced Research and Technology, effective July l. He would succeed Charles W. Harper. Harper had been appointed Special Assistant to the Director for Interagency Affairs at ARC, NASA announced June 25. Armstrong had served as Naval aviator 1949-1952 and after 1955 as aeronautical research pilot for NACA and NASA. Flight testing included piloting X-15 and X-1. rocket aircraft, F-100, F-101, F-102, F104, F-5D, and B-47. He became NASA astronaut in 1962, was command pilot for Gemini VIII mission's first space docking of two vehicles March 16, 1966, and was first man to step onto moon July 20, 1969. Harper had left ARC in 1964 to become NASA Director of Aeronautical Research and had been appointed Deputy Associate Administrator for Aeronautics in 1967. He had first joined ARC staff in 1941. (NASA Releases 70-72, 70-105)
Mutual assistance agreement between Army Missile Command and MSFC was signed in Huntsville by MIG Edwin I. Donley, Commanding General of Missile Command, and Dr. Eberhard F. M. Rees, MSFC Director. Agreement on operational and support relationships included provision of facilities, services, materials, and equipment to carry out respective missions of the two organizations. (Marshall Star, 5/20/70, 1)
Rep. Henry S. Reuss (D-Wis.) told House that 1969 DOT economic analysis of SST had predicted market for 420 aircraft rather than 500 required for Government to recoup its investment plus four percent interest. Reuss quoted from summary of DOT report: "If the government has as its primary objective recovery of past SST program expenditures ($633.4 million by the end of FY 1969) as well as future investment, the principal would be recovered plus a small return on investment. The profits to industry in excess of the normal industry return are not sufficient to cover the federal sunk costs plus future planned federal expenditures at either the interest rate specified in the present contract or recommended by the Bureau of the Budget." (CR, 5/18/70, H4480-2)
L/G John W. O'Neill, AFSC Vice Commander, delivered keynote address at AFSC Air Force Materials Symposium in Miami Beach, Fla.: USAF was finding it "essential to push harder against the material and structural limits" of knowledge than at any time in its history. "We are forced to look over and beyond the horizon for new materials; new combinations; new structural concepts; and new methods of fabricating, testing, inspecting-and predicting," New aircraft had to "fly higher and faster than ever before-in some cases at the fringes of space-and still be large enough to carry an effective combat payload over extended ranges." Missiles had to "do incredible things under even worse conditions, with the added proviso that no humans will be aboard to make in-flight corrections. . . . With our spacecraft. . .we simply combine the harshest requirements imposed on both aircraft and missiles. And the difficulties will be compounded as the Air Force and NASA jointly develop reusable boosters, shuttles and tugs for the space transportation system." (Text)
"Ailing aerospace industry" was described by Leroy F. Aarons in Washington Post: Since early 1968, aerospace employment in California had dropped from high of 616 000 to 525 000 in March 1969. "Roughly 30 percent of these were professional and technical personnel." North American Rockwell Corp. had accounted for "nearly a third of the layoffs." Since December 1969, NR had cut Los Angeles Div. to "skeleton force of 4660, half of whom took pay cuts." Spokesman for State Unemployment Office in Van Nuys, Calif., had said desperation had driven out-of-work professionals into variety of positions at pay cuts of 50% to 60%. Aerospace engineering association official had explained that base technology had been developed. "We don't need propulsion groups of thousands of people to figure out how to make a missile fly any loner. Maybe we need 100 to come up with a modification." (W Post, 518/70, Al)
May 18-20: At annual convention of Aviation/Space Writers Assn. in Las Vegas, Nev., L/G James H. Doolittle (USAF, Ret.)-pioneer of instrumented flight, holder of aircraft flight records, and winner of four major aviation trophies-received FAA's Extraordinary Service Award. Gen. Doolittle was cited for "distinguished contributions to virtually every segment of American aviation." Daniel Z. Henkin, Assistant Secretary of Defense (Public Affairs), disclosed in speech the existence of second "Chinese object" orbiting earth about 3200 km (2000 mi) ahead of active satellite launched by Communist Chinese April 24. He said DOD believed "that this is part of the final stage of the missile which orbited the satellite," Significance of launch was "that the Communist Chinese have the capability to put in orbit a considerable payload," which confirmed technological progress; "prudence requires that we continue to credit them with a near term capability to fire their first ICBM." (FAA Release 70-48; Text)
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