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See, Elliot McKay Jr

American test pilot astronaut, 1962-1966. Died in crash of his T-38 trainer into the McDonnell Aircraft plant.

Status: Deceased; Active 1962-1966. Born: 1927-07-23. Died: 1966-02-28. Birth Place: Dallas, Texas.

Educated Merchant Marine Academy; UCLA.

Official NASA Biography as of June 2016: Elliot M. See, Jr. NASA Astronaut (Deceased)

PERSONAL DATA: Born in Dallas, Texas, on July 23, 1927. Died February 28, 1966, in St. Louis Missouri in the crash of a T-38 jet. He is survived by his wife Marilyn and their three children.

EDUCATION: Bachelor of Science degree, U.S. Merchant Marine Academy; Master of Science degree in engineering, University of California at Los Angeles.

ORGANIZATIONS: Member of the Society of Experimental Test Pilots; Associate Fellow of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics.

EXPERIENCE: Naval Aviator from 1953 to 1956.

General Electric Company from 1949 to 1953 and 1956 to 1962 as a flight test engineer, group leader, and experimental test pilot. Served as project pilot on J79-8 engine development program in connection with F4H aircraft. Conducted powerplant flight tests on the J-47, J-73, J-79, CJ805 and CJ805 aft-fan engines. This work involved flying in F-86, XF4D, F-104, F11F-1F, RB-66, F4H, and T-38 aircraft.

See logged over 3,700 hours flying time, including 3,200 hours in jet aircraft.

NASA EXPERIENCE: See was one of nine pilot astronauts selected in September 1962. He participated in all phases of the astronaut training program and was subsequently given responsibility for monitoring the design and development of guidance and navigation systems. He also aided in the coordination for mission planning. He was selected as pilot of the back-up crew for the Gemini 5 mission, and the command pilot for the Gemini 9 flight.

Mr. See died on February 28, 1966, in St. Louis, Missouri, in the crash of a T-38 aircraft.

FEBRUARY 1966

Official NASA Biography

NAME: Elliott M. See, Jr. NASA Astronaut (Deceased)

PERSONAL DATA: Born in Dallas, Texas, on July 23, 1927. Died February 28, 1966, in St. Louis Missouri in the crash of a T-38 jet. He is survived by his wife Marilyn and their three children.

EDUCATION: Bachelor of Science degree, U.S. Merchant Marine Academy; Master of Science degree in engineering, University of California at Los Angeles.

ORGANIZATIONS: Member of the Society of Experimental Test Pilots; Associate Fellow of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics.

EXPERIENCE: Naval Aviator from 1953 to 1956.

See logged over 3,700 hours flying time, including 3,200 hours in jet aircraft.

NASA EXPERIENCE: See was one of nine pilot astronauts selected in September 1962. He participated in all phases of the astronaut training program and was subsequently given responsibility for monitoring the design and development of guidance and navigation systems. He also aided in the coordination for mission planning. He was selected as pilot of the back-up crew for the Gemini 5 mission, and the command pilot for the Gemini 9 flight.

Mr. See died on February 28, 1966, in St. Louis, Missouri, in the crash of a T-38 aircraft.

FEBRUARY 1966

More at: See.

Family: Astronaut. Country: USA. Spacecraft: Gemini. Flights: Gemini 5, Gemini 9A. Agency: USN. Bibliography: 12, 6001.

1927 July 23 - .

Birth of Elliot McKay Jr See - . Nation: USA. Related Persons: See. American test pilot astronaut, 1962-1966. Died in crash of his T-38 trainer into the McDonnell Aircraft plant..

1962 April 18 - .

NASA announced that applications would be accepted for additional astronauts until June 1, 1962. - . Nation: USA. Related Persons: Armstrong, Borman, Conrad, Lovell, McDivitt, See, Stafford, White, Young. Spacecraft: Gemini.
NASA planned to select five to ten astronauts to augment the seven-member Mercury astronaut team. The new pilots would participate in support operations in Project Mercury and would join the Mercury astronauts in piloting the two-man Gemini spacecraft. To be chosen, the applicant must (1) be an experienced jet test pilot and preferably be presently engaged in flying high-performance aircraft; (2) have attained experimental flight test status through military service, aircraft industry, or NASA, or must have graduated from a military test pilot school; (3) have earned a degree in the physical or biological sciences or in engineering; (4) be a United States citizen under 35 years of age at the time of selection, six feet or less in height; and (5) be recommended by his parent organization. Pilots meeting these qualifications would be interviewed in July and given written examinations on their engineering and scientific knowledge. Selected applicants would then be thoroughly examined by a group of medical specialists. The training program for the new astronauts would include work with design and development engineers, simulator flying, centrifuge training, additional scientific training, and flights in high-performance aircraft.

1962 September 11 - .

NASA Astronaut Training Group 2 selected. - . Nation: USA. Related Persons: Borman, Conrad, Lovell, McDivitt, See, Stafford, White, Young.
The group was selected to provide pilots for the Gemini program and early Apollo missions.. Qualifications: Test pilot status (either military, NASA, or aircraft industry), qualified jet pilot with minimum 1,000 flight-hours, under 35 years old, under 183 cm height, excellent health. US citizen.. 253 applicants survived initial NASA screening of their records. Following physical and psychiatric tests, nine were selected. Eight made it to space (See was killed in a T-38 crash before his first spaceflight). This was generally considered the highest quality group of astronauts ever selected. They would command the missions during the glory days of the American space program - Gemini, Apollo, and Skylab. Young was the only astronaut to fly Gemini, Apollo, and the Shuttle program. Armstrong was the only one to fly the X-15, Gemini, and Apollo. Conrad was the only one to fly Gemini, Apollo, and Skylab.

1962 September 17 - .

Nine new astronauts named - . Nation: USA. Related Persons: Armstrong, Borman, Conrad, Lovell, McDivitt, See, Stafford, White, Young. Spacecraft: Gemini.
NASA's nine new astronauts were named in Houston, Tex., by Robert R. Gilruth, MSC Director. Chosen from 253 applicants, the former test pilots who would join the original seven Mercury astronauts in training for Projects Gemini and Apollo were: Neil A. Armstrong, NASA civilian test pilot; Maj. Frank Borman, Air Force; Lt. Charles Conrad, Jr., Navy; Lt.Cdr. James A, Lovell, Jr., Navy; Capt. James A. McDivitt, Air Force; Elliot M. See, Jr., civilian test pilot for the General Electric Company; Capt. Thomas P. Stafford, Air Force; Capt. Edward H. White II, Air Force; and Lt. Cdr. John W. Young, Navy.

1963 January 26 - .

New assignments for the seven original astronauts - . Nation: USA. Related Persons: Armstrong, Borman, Carpenter, Conrad, Cooper, Glenn, Grissom, Lovell, McDivitt, Schirra, See, Shepard, Slayton, Stafford, White, Young. Program: Apollo. Spacecraft: Gemini.
MSC announced new assignments for the seven original astronauts: L. Gordon Cooper, Jr., and Alan B. Shepard, Jr., would be responsible for the remaining pilot phases of Project Mercury; Virgil I. Grissom would specialize in Project Gemini; John H. Glenn, Jr., would concentrate on Project Apollo; M. Scott Carpenter would cover lunar excursion training; and Walter M. Schirra, Jr., would be responsible for Gemini and Apollo operations and training. As Coordinator for Astronaut Activities, Donald K. Slayton would maintain overall supervision of astronaut duties.
Specialty areas for the second generation were: trainers and simulators, Neil A. Armstrong; boosters, Frank Borman; cockpit layout and systems integration, Charles Conrad, Jr.; recovery system, James A. Lovell, Jr.; guidance and navigation, James A. McDivitt; electrical, sequential, and mission planning, Elliot M. See, Jr.; communications, instrumentation, and range integration, Thomas P. Stafford; flight control systems, Edward H. White II; and environmental control systems, personal equipment, and survival equipment, John W. Young.

1963 January 26 - .

Manned Spacecraft Center announced specialty areas for the nine new astronauts. - . Nation: USA. Related Persons: Armstrong, Borman, Conrad, Lovell, McDivitt, See, Stafford, White, Young. Spacecraft: Gemini, Gemini ECS.
Manned Spacecraft Center announced specialty areas for the nine new astronauts: trainers and simulators, Neil A. Armstrong; boosters, Frank Borman; cockpit layout and systems integration, Charles Conrad, Jr.; recovery systems, James A. Lovell, Jr.; guidance and navigation, James A. McDivitt; electrical, Sequential, and mission planning, Elliot M. See, Jr.; communications, instrumentation, and range integration, Thomas P. Stafford; flight control systems, Edward H White II; and environmental control systems, personal and survival equipment, John W Young.

1963 May 6 - .

Apollo LEM manual control simulated - . Nation: USA. Related Persons: Armstrong, Carpenter, Conrad, McDivitt, Schirra, See, White, Young. Program: Apollo. Spacecraft: Apollo LM, CSM Guidance, LM Simulator.
Astronauts M. Scott Carpenter, Walter M. Schirra, Jr., Neil A. Armstrong, James A. McDivitt, Elliot M. See, Jr., Edward H. White II, Charles Conrad, Jr., and John W. Young participated in a study in LTV's Manned Space Flight Simulator at Dallas, Tex. Under an MSC contract, LTV was studying the astronauts' ability to control the LEM manually and to rendezvous with the CM if the primary guidance system failed during descent.

1964 April 24 - .

Deletion of the Apollo LEM's front docking capability - . Nation: USA. Related Persons: See, White. Program: Apollo. Spacecraft: Apollo LM, LM Ascent Propulsion, LM Descent Propulsion, LM ECS, LM Hatch.
Representatives from a number of elements within MSC (including systems and structural engineers, advanced systems and rendezvous experts, and two astronauts, Edward H. White II and Elliot M. See, Jr.) discussed the idea of deleting the LEM's front docking capability (an idea spawned by the recent TM-1 mockup review). Rather than nose-to-nose docking, the LEM crew might be able to perform the rendezvous and docking maneuver, docking at the spacecraft's upper (transfer) hatch, by using a window above the LEM commander's head to enable him to see his target. Additional Details: here....

1965 August 21 - . 14:00 GMT - . Launch Site: Cape Canaveral. Launch Complex: Cape Canaveral LC19. LV Family: Titan. Launch Vehicle: Titan II GLV.

Gemini 5 - . Call Sign: Gemini 5. Crew: Conrad, Cooper. Backup Crew: Armstrong, See. Payload: Gemini SC5/Rendezvous Evaluation Pod. Mass: 3,605 kg (7,947 lb). Nation: USA. Agency: NASA Houston. Class: Manned. Type: Manned spacecraft. Flight: Gemini 5. Spacecraft: Gemini. Duration: 7.96 days. Decay Date: 1965-08-29 . USAF Sat Cat: 1516 . COSPAR: 1965-068A. Apogee: 395 km (245 mi). Perigee: 304 km (188 mi). Inclination: 32.60 deg. Period: 91.50 min.
Major objectives of the eight-day mission were evaluating the performance of the rendezvous guidance and navigation system, using a rendezvous evaluation pod (REP), and evaluating the effects of prolonged exposure to the space environment on the flight crew. Secondary objectives included demonstrating controlled reentry guidance, evaluating fuel cell performance, demonstrating all phases of guidance and control system operation needed for a rendezvous mission, evaluating the capability of either pilot to maneuver the spacecraft in orbit to rendezvous, evaluating the performance of rendezvous radar, and executing 17 experiments. The mission proceeded without incident through the first two orbits and the ejection of the REP. About 36 minutes after beginning evaluation of the rendezvous guidance and navigation system, the crew noted that the pressure in the oxygen supply tank of the fuel cell system was falling. Pressure dropped from 850 pounds per square inch absolute (psia) at 26 minutes into the flight until it stabilized at 70 psia at 4 hours 22 minutes, and gradually increased through the remainder of the mission. The spacecraft was powered down and the REP exercise was abandoned. By the seventh revolution, experts on the ground had analyzed the problem and a powering-up procedure was started. During the remainder of the mission the flight plan was continuously scheduled in real time. Four rendezvous radar tests were conducted during the mission, the first in revolution 14 on the second day; the spacecraft rendezvous radar successfully tracked a transponder on the ground at Cape Kennedy. During the third day, a simulated Agena rendezvous was conducted at full electrical load. The simulation comprised four maneuvers - apogee adjust, phase adjust, plane change, and coelliptical maneuver - using the orbit attitude and maneuver system (OAMS). Main activities through the fourth day of the mission concerned operations and experiments. During the fifth day, OAMS operation became sluggish and thruster No. 7 inoperative. Thruster No. 8 went out the next day, and the rest of the system was gradually becoming more erratic. Limited experimental and operational activities continued through the remainder of the mission. Retrofire was initiated in the 121st revolution during the eighth day of the mission, one revolution early because of threatening weather in the planned recovery area. Reentry and landing were satisfactory, but the landing point was 145 km short, the result of incorrect navigation coordinates transmitted to the spacecraft computer from the ground network. Landing occurred August 29, 190 hours 55 minutes after the mission had begun. The astronauts arrived on board the prime recovery ship, the aircraft carrier Lake Champlain, at 9:25. The spacecraft was recovered at 11:51 a.m.
With this flight, the US finally took the manned spaceflight endurance record from Russia, while demonstrating that the crew could survive in zero gravity for the length of time required for a lunar mission. However the mission was incredibly boring, the spacecraft just drifting to conserve fuel most of the time, and was 'just about the hardest thing I've ever done' according to a hyperactive Pete Conrad. An accident with freeze dried shrimp resulted in the cabin being filled with little pink subsatellites.

1966 February 28 - .

Gemini IX Astronauts Elliot M. See, Jr., and Charles A. Bassett II killed when their T-38 jet crashed. - . Nation: USA. Related Persons: Bassett, See. Flight: Gemini 9, Gemini 9A. Spacecraft: Gemini.
Gemini IX Astronauts Elliot M. See, Jr., and Charles A. Bassett II killed when their T-38 jet crashed. Gemini IX Astronauts Elliot M. See, Jr., and Charles A. Bassett II were killed when their T-38 jet training plane crashed in rain and fog short of the St. Louis Municipal Airport. The jet, which had been cleared for an instrument landing, was left of center in its approach to the runway when it turned toward the McDonnell complex, 1000 feet from the landing strip. It hit the roof of the building where spacecraft nos. 9 and 10 were being housed, bounced into an adjacent courtyard, and exploded. Several McDonnell employees were slightly injured. Minutes later the Gemini IX backup crew, Thomas P. Stafford and Eugene A. Cernan, landed safely. The four astronauts were en route to McDonnell for two weeks' training in the simulator. NASA Headquarters announced that Stafford and Cernan would fly the Gemini IX mission on schedule and appointed Alan B. Shepard, Jr., to head a seven-man investigating team.

1966 February 28 - .

Death of Elliot McKay See Jr - . Related Persons: See. American test pilot astronaut, 1962-1966. Died in crash of his T-38 trainer into the McDonnell Aircraft plant..

1966 June - .

Gemini 9A (cancelled) - . Crew: Bassett, See. Backup Crew: Cernan, Stafford. Nation: USA. Flight: Gemini 9A. Spacecraft: G4C AMU, Gemini.
Elliot See and Charlie Bassett were the prime crew for Gemini 9. On February 28, 1966, they were flying in a NASA T-38 trainer to visit the McDonnell plant in St Louis, where their spacecraft was in assembly. See misjudged his landing approach, and in pulling up from the runway, hit Building 101 where the spacecraft was being assembled. Both astronauts were killed, and 14 persons on the ground were injured. As a result, the Gemini 9 backup crew became the prime crew, and all subsequent crew assignments were reshuffled. This ended up determining who would be the first man on the moon.

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