Robert Michael White
Robert Michael White was a United States Air Force fighter pilot, prisoner of war, test pilot, engineer, and X-15 astronaut. On July 17, 1962, he flew X-15 Flight 62 above 50 miles and became the first pilot to earn astronaut wings in a winged vehicle.
- Born
- July 6, 1924
- Died
- March 17, 2010
- Birthplace
- New York City, New York,United States
Flights
1
Spacewalks
N/A
EVA time
N/A
In space
Suborbital spaceflight above 50 miles
Bio
White entered military aviation during World War II, flew P-51 Mustangs in combat, and was shot down over Germany on his fifty-second combat mission. After the war he returned to aviation, studied electrical engineering, and built a career in and command.
In the X-15 program, White became the first person to fly Mach 4, Mach 5, and Mach 6 in a winged aircraft. His July 1962 high-altitude flight reached 314,750 feet, above the United States spaceflight threshold but below the Karman line.
White later served in combat and command roles during the Vietnam War and retired as a major general in 1981. His record links conventional fighter aviation, hypersonic flight research, and the earliest reusable spaceplane-style human flights.