238

UNITED STATES NAVAL AVIATION 1910-1995

1960-Contin ued

drone was manned by a safety pilot, the helicopter was

flown by remote control from shore and maneuvered

around the ship and into position for a landing before

the pilot took command and made the final let down.

1 July To support the operations of the

Missile Range, Calif., a Pacific Missile Range

was established at Eniwetok, Marshall Islands.

Pacific

Facility

9 July Wasp sailed from Guantanamo Bay for the

coast of Africa to support UN attempts to quiet disor-

ders in the newly independent states of the Congo. By

the time of her departure in early August, the carrier

had supplied a quarter of a million gallons of gasoline

in support of the UN airlift.

18 July The Navy terminated the Corvus air-to-sur-

face missile program in order to permit increased

emphasis upon other weapons systems offering a

wider scope of employment.

20 July A Polaris ballistic missile was launched for

the first time from George Washington (SSBN 598)

while submerged at sea off Cape Canaveral, Fla. The

missile broke clear of the water, ignited in the air and

streaked more than 1,000 miles toward its target down

the Atlantic Missile Range.

21 July The Navy announced that a contract for the

development of the Missileer aircraft for launching the

Eagle long-range air-to-air guided missile was being

issued to the Douglas Aircraft Corporation.

1 August The Naval Air Rocket Test Station, Lake

Denmark, N.J., was disestablished and the land was

turned over to the Army for incorporation in Picattinny

Arsenal. Navy liquid rocket development projects were

transferred to other activities, primarily the Naval

Ordnance Test Station, China Lake, Calif.; the Naval

Propellant Plant, Indian Head, Md.; and the Naval

Weapons Laboratory, Dahlgren, Va.

2 August A Naval Research Laboratory Aerobee

rocket, instrumented to study the ultraviolet spectrum

of the sun, was launched at the White Sands Missile

Range, N. Mex., and soared over 90 miles into the

atmosphere. As the rocket returned to earth, its nose

cone separated from the main section and was

parachuted to the ground.

11 August In the first recovery of an object after it

had been in orbit, a Navy HRS-3 helicopter operating

from Haiti Victory (T-AK-238) off the Pacific Missile

Range, Calif., recovered the instrumented capsule dis-

charged by Discoverer XIII on its 17th pass around the

earth. The capsule was located about 330 miles north-

west of Honolulu, Hawaii, by Air Force planes which

directed the ship toward the spot. Recovery was made

less than three hours after the capsule hit the water.

2 September Captain Holden C. Richardson, Naval

Aviator No. 13, died at Bethesda, Md. A man of many

attainments, Captain Richardson was the Navy's first

engineering test pilot, helped develop the Navy's first

catapults, was one of the designers of the NC boats

supervised their construction and piloted one of them

on the transatlantic attempt, was a pioneer designer of

flying boat hulls, and one of the original members of

NACA.

5 September An F4H-l Phantom II, piloted by

Lieutenant Colonel Thomas H. Miller, USMC, set a new

world record of 500 kilometers over the triangular

course at Edwards AFB, Calif., with a speed of

1,216.78 mph.

19 September The NASA Nuclear Emulsion

Recovery Vehicle (NERV) was launched from the

Naval Missile Facility, Point Arguello, Calif., by an

Argo D-8 rocket. The instrumented capsule reached an

altitude of 1,260 miles and landed 1,300 miles down

range where it was recovered by Navy ships.

25 September An F4H-l Phantom II, piloted by

Commander John F. Davis, averaged 1,390.21 mph for

100 kilometers over a closed circuit course, bettering

the existing world record for the distance by more

than 200 mph.

20 October The Department of Defense announced

establishment, under Navy management, of an Army-

Navy-Air Force program to develop the prototype of

an operational vertical takeoff and landing aircraft for

the purpose of testing its suitability for air transport

servIce.

10 November The Secretary of Defense directed

that the Navy Space Surveillance System and the Air

Force Space Track System, each performing similar

services over different sections of the surveillance net-

work, be placed under the control of the North

American Air Defense Command (NORAD) for military

functions.

15 November The Polaris Fleet Ballistic Missile

Weapon System became operational as George

Washington (SSBN 598) departed Charleston, S.c.,

with a load of 16 A-I tactical missiles.