[FPSPACE] NBC-TV news: 'Soldiers Train as Astronauts'

[John Charles]

JimO,

If you are concerned that they might respond with indignation at the
militarization of space because 4 US Army helicopter pilots are
currently NASA astronauts, I suppose they would first have to forget
49 years of Russian cosmonauts going to work every single day in
military uniforms--unlike the American military officers serving as
astronauts who at least dress like civilians every day (unless you
count those on "I Dream of Jeannie").

That was something else that Gray of NBC didn't mention: the Army
astronauts are chopper pilots, not ground-pounders.  I guess it is not
as stark a contrast if one takes that into consideration.

Interestingly, Gen. William Westmoreland wrote to Webb (or maybe it
was Mueller) in ~1969 offering Army helicopter pilots as astronauts,
but NASA was not interested then.

JBC

On Thu, Jun 11, 2009 at 8:43 AM, James Oberg<jameseoberg at comcast.net> wrote:
> How do you suppose the Russian (and other foreign) press will react to
> this NBC News TV story, ''Soldiers Train as Astronauts" ??
> http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21134540/vp/31202514#31202514
>
>
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-- 
John Charles
Houston, Texas