[FPSPACE] Russians dispute 500th Earth space traveler claim

[Robert Pearlman]

Walker was the only X-15 pilot to fly above 62 miles (100 km), the  
altitude required to achieve a space flight record as confirmed by the  
Federation Aeronautique Internationale, the world's governing body  
when it comes to aeronautic and astronautic records.

The other X-15 pilots who flew above 50 miles but below 62 miles were  
awarded Air Force (and later, for the civilians, NASA) astronaut  
wings, but their flights are not considered to be "into space" by  
international standards.

I don't know if the Air Force would still recognize a flight above 50  
miles and below 62 miles to be worthy of astronaut wings. I don't know  
why a craft capable of reaching 50 miles today would not be able to  
achieve the 12 additional miles to conform to the FAI standard.

The line had to be drawn somewhere and as the Soviet Union and the  
United States (NASA) both acknowledged the FAI for world record status  
from the start, 62 miles (100 kilometers) seems to be it.

- Robert

-- 
Robert Pearlman, Editor
collectSPACE - The Source for Space History & Artifacts
http://www.collectspace.com/
Twitter: @robertpearlman | @collectSPACE

On Aug 6, 2009, at 5:48 PM, gorski wrote:

>
> Just Walker?  Granted, Engle would have counted anyways after STS-2,  
> but
> Robert, have we stopped counting the other X-15 pilots who got  
> astronaut
> wings?  As memory serves, there were a handful who got astronaut  
> wings for
> flying the X-15 past fifty miles, which was the US standard at the  
> time.
>
> ...for that matter--I don't know what we'd do today with a pilot who  
> flew
> between 50 and 62 miles--did we revise a standard somewhere, or is it
> still on the books that a military pilot earns his astronaut wings  
> for a
> 50 mile altitude?
>
> Not that Roscosmos cares about funny English measurements like
> "miles"--I'm just curious if our list of "humans in space" varies from
> theirs by those entries as well.
>
>
> cheers,
>
> --me
>
>
> On Thu, 6 Aug 2009, James Oberg wrote:
>
> }Thanks, I need to pay closer attention.
> }
> }
> }  ----- Original Message -----
> }  From: Robert Pearlman
> }  To: fpspace at friends-partners.org
> }  Sent: Thursday, August 06, 2009 5:19 PM
> }  Subject: Re: [FPSPACE] Russians dispute 500th Earth space  
> traveler claim
> }
> }
> }  Roscosmos is referring to the 500th person in orbit, not space.
> }
> }
> }  They are not counting X-15 pilot Joseph Walker's and SpaceShipOne  
> pilots Mike Melvill and Brian Binnie's suborbital flights above 62  
> miles (100 kilometers).
> }
> }
> }  As it stands now, the 500th person in orbit will be on STS-128  
> and will either be Kevin Ford, Jose Hernandez or Nicole Stott.   
> (Ford will be on the flight deck for launch, while Hernandez and  
> Stott are on the middeck).
> }
> }
> }  --
> }  Robert Pearlman, Editor
> }  collectSPACE - The Source for Space History & Artifacts
> }  http://www.collectspace.com/
> }  Twitter: @robertpearlman | @collectSPACE
> }
> }
> }  On Aug 6, 2009, at 4:51 PM, James Oberg wrote:
> }
> }
> }    Apparently there's a Russian claim, citing RKA,
> }    that if the next shuttle mission is delayed, Surayev on
> }    the next Soyuz will be the 500th world space traveler.
> }
> }    I thought we'd already had the roadmark.
> }
> }    What did we count, that the Russians don't?
> }
> }    Jim
> }
> }    Россия претендует на еще один  
> "космический рекорд"
> }    http://www.personalmoney.ru/pnwsinf.asp?id=1244675
> }
> }
> }
> }
> }
> }------------------------------------------------------------------------------
> }
> }
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> }

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