Sierra Hotel Blog
Margaret Heafield Hamilton led development of the on-board flight software for the Apollo space program at MIT. Three minutes before Apollo 11 touched down on the Moon, her software’s priority-based asynchronous executive averted a mission abort by managing a computer overload caused by a faulty radar input. Margaret Hamilton saved Apollo 11.
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On December 20, 1962, NASA research pilot Milton O. Thompson ejected inverted at 18,000 feet after his F-104 Starfighter experienced an asymmetric flap condition over Edwards AFB. He descended safely under a good chute, walked to the road, and was found hitchhiking by NASA Flight Operations chief Joe Vensel. Thompson went on to fly the M2-F1 lifting body 47 times, pilot the X-15 to Mach 5.48, and eventually become NASA Chief Engineer.
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On October 30, 1963, Lt. James Flatley landed a 121,000-pound four-engine KC-130F Hercules on the deck of USS Forrestal — with no tailhook and no catapult. He completed 29 touch-and-go landings, 21 full-stop landings, and 21 unassisted takeoffs. The Navy deemed it too risky for regular use, but Flatley earned the Distinguished Flying Cross for what remains one of the most audacious carrier landings ever attempted.
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General Joe Henry Engle earned astronaut wings in the X-15 at just 32 years old, flew 17 X-15 missions, and commanded two Space Shuttle missions including STS-2 aboard Columbia. He also flew Space Shuttle Enterprise on multiple unpowered Approach and Landing Tests, releasing from NASA's 747 at 25,000 feet. Joe flew over 185 aircraft types and logged more than 15,400 hours. He flew west on July 10, 2024, at the age of 91.
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On May 31, 1967, a lone USAF KC-135 Stratotanker crew commanded by Maj. John H. Casteel saved six Navy aircraft over the Gulf of Tonkin — two KA-3 Whales, two F-8 Crusaders, and two F-4 Phantoms — executing the first-ever triple air-to-air refueling in history. Running critically low on fuel themselves, the crew never considered leaving a fellow aviator behind. All four crew members received the Distinguished Flying Cross and the Mackay Trophy.
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