MAJOR GENERAL ROBERT MICHAEL WHITE - AUTOGRAPH LETTER SIGNED 03/21/2004 - HFSID 305669

ROBERT MICHAEL WHITE
The first human in space (flying the X-15), he describes that flight, but recommends that a teacher focus his students on environmental problems, not space exploration.
Typed Letter signed: "RMW", 1 page, 8x11. No place, 2004 March 21. To "Dear Mr. Van Buskirk", in full: "I flew the X-15 into space and then re-entered the atmosphere to land at Edwards AFB. The flight path was a ballistic trajectory over Nevada (near Las Vegas) and ended with the landing at Edwards. You pose many questions about the Moon and Mars. None of these can be answered with certainty and I will not try. If a trip to Mars ever happens it shall be more than 30 or 35 years from now. There are many things that must occur first. How will we get there? Many new technologies must be developed and that shall take a lot of time. Take something as simple as water. Can we produce water sufficiently for a trip that could last several years since humans cannot survive without water. Perhaps you could interest your students in things closer to home such as the environment. Can we find renewable and alternative sources of energy? More research into our oceans for new medicines or other things we've yet to learn about our oceans. Thanks for your interest and kind regards". US Air Force pilot Robert Michael White (1924-2010) set a number of records in the X-15 rocket plane during the 1960s, including becoming the first airplane pilot to reach space. White was a World War II and Korean War fighter pilot, shot down and held in a German prisoner of war camp from February to April of 1945. He joined the X-15 program in 1957 as a backup pilot and was named the prime pilot after Ivan Kincheloe was killed in an air crash in 1958. White became the first person to fly six times faster than the speed of sound (4,093 miles per hour, to be exact) on Nov. 9, 1961. He also flew the X-15 to an altitude of 59.6 miles on July 17, 1962, an altitude that made him the first airplane pilot to earn the Air Force rating of winged astronaut. He was also involved in the development of the F-15 Eagle fighter and A-10 Thunderbolt II ground attack aircraft. White retired from the United States Air Force as a major general in 1981. Fine condition.