posted January 31, 2010 09:12 AM               

North American Aviation's X-15 rocket plane flew at Mach 6.72 and at altitudes above 67 miles -- at the threshold of space. The men who piloted this amazing plane became the USAF's first astronauts. Powered by an XLR-99 engine capable of producing 70,000 pounds of thrust at peak altitude, the X-15 pushed the flight envelope for manned aircraft past the post office. Notably, both Apollo astronaut Neil Armstrong and Space Shuttle commander Joe Engle piloted the X-15.

Originally published by North American for the USAF and later NASA, this Flight Operating Handbook represents a 1963 update of the original version first printed in 1961. Just recently declassified, it provides a revealing look into one of history's great planes. Also included in this edition is a rare X-15 rescue manual made for the plane's ground crew. Please note: due to the archival nature of some portions of the original documents, image and text quality may vary. Care has been taken to preserve the integrity of the text.

• Paperback: 196 pages
  
• Publisher: Periscope Film LLC (January 7, 2010)
  
• ISBN-10: 1935327860
  
• ISBN-13: 978-1935327868

posted January 31, 2010 11:57 PM               

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Originally posted by GoesTo11:
So how is that different from this...?

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