This is the desert of western nevada, already wellknown for its Nuclear Tests by the Atomic Energy commission here at yucca flats. Adjoining this test site is an active aerial gunnery range. Ordered in 1955 by president ial order, 60 square miles of this prohibited area were set aside for a special purpose, as a narrow air corridor to reach the spot on the map. Air charts ordered closed, except from the chief of staff from the u. S. Air force. The name of the isolated spot in nevada is watertown and its very isolation is the greatest importance. The specialists that come off this transport are handpicked. They are checked every time they arrive at watertown. Overall security in the area is the highest yet to be maintained in this country, even higher than that of the manhattan project. Selection of watertown was dictated by several unique considerations. The area is isolated from prying eyes by the aec range with lethal reminders of past atomic explosions. Aec guards maintain regular patrols. Supplies destined for watertown channel into the area through regular aec routes. Watertown radio and teletype communication the angel is referred to as an article. The pilots are called drivers. The geographical spot of groom lake is called home plate. The angel was designed to do a single job, obtain the largest amount of reconnaissance information ever collected on a single flight. For the first time in jet i history, it is possible to inspect 400 square miles with a single cartographic photograph. For the first time in jet history, sensitive electronic equipment is being carried to heights where it can search for any number of radio, tv, or radar signals and record this information for detailed analysis. There are already 12 alternate will equipment loads for the u2. Development of the angel and the informationgathering equipment it carries is the result of the most experienced judgment applied at every critical point. A select group of capable, dedicated men in industry and government working with trust and cooperation completed this specific project with the utmost speed. The idea for the angel itself was born when lockheed started a design study on the maximum altitude possible on a jet airframe for reconnaissance purposes. The angel took sufficient form to be presented as a proposal. Members of the killian committee, a portion of the Scientific Advisory group, defined the technical feasibility and urgency of the program. The optical and photographic concepts were envisioned to dr. James baker and dr. Edward lands. The original proposal was modified to produce more spectacular results. On december 9, 1954, the goahead was given, and lockheeds chief engineer called together his tiny 26man special projects engineering group. Here were the problems they faced. To design, build an airplane and fly it in eight months. An airplane that would cruise well above 70,000 feet. One that would travel almost as far as a b52 and remain in the air for 10 hours. A plane that would be completely reliable with forced landings out of the question. A plane that would be the worlds most stable aircraft for High Altitude photography. A plane that would be flexible in concept to carry at least 12 different equipment loads and have no one penalize the others in weight. A plane that would weigh only 1. 5 times the weight of the power plant. Weight was the critical factor in the whole project. Designers said they would trade their collective grandmothers for 10 pounds of empty weight. Pounds in fact were called grandmothers, but weight could not be saved at the expense of reliability. A real engineering challenge met with proven knowhow and a basic design so simple it was almost revolutionary. The angel is simplicity itself. All controlled surfaces are cableoperated. The tail section of the fuselage attaches with only three bolts. The inside of the 80 foot wing are for big fuel tanks. The interior of the fuselage is plain and uncluttered. The cockpit canopy stressed to handle a pressure differential of five pounds per square inch is operated by hand. The pantleg engine intake s presented a problem. At altitude, near perfect distribution was needed to keep the engine running. The final intake on the angel gives us good pressure distribution as would be found in a power plant wind tunnel. The unique gustrelieving feature was introduced. The flats tilt four degrees upward. The ailerons tilt 10 degrees to completely change the airfoil characteristics. During development of the angel, Kelly Johnson met with each member of the special projects group at 7 00 every morning. Any problems occurring on the previous day were discussed and corrective decisions were made immediately. Subcontracting was virtually impossible. 87 of the prototype was fabricated in one building in burbank. Components were run through the companys big presses at night and on sundays, then hidden from dayshift workers. The cmj Manufacturing Company are Clarence Johnson was formed in an unmarked downtown warehouse to handle shipments from vendors and unmarked trucks. Designers of the angel could not get into a highspeed wind tunnel. Calculations were made with computers. 50 of production took place in this building in bakersfield. At peak production, only 600 people were involved. Just one man in every 60 on the lockheed payroll. The angels were completely assembled, checked out, disassembled, enshrouded for airlift to watertown. Fuel and hydraulic fluid were i added for the first time. The angels were tested by company pilots. Because of its long wings, the angel has been referred to as a jet glider. It has the worlds most efficient liftdrag ratio. 25. 6 to one. That is that of the many that is better than many competition sale plans. The angel can glide 300 miles without power. The engine for the aircraft was originally the Pratt Whitney j5737, a thrust unit built for the b52. Later, an 11,500 pound version was developed specifically for the angel. Pratt whitney president and chief engineer crammed a normal threeyear Engine Development program into 12 months. The new engine has a 16stage compressor with nine stages in the low range and seven in the High Pressure chamber. The low range compressor is driven by a hollow shaft, and turns at a lower speed than the high compressor. The Pratt Whitney engine operates at full power for the duration of the flight. At sea level, this unit gulps nearly 9000 pounds of fuel for per hour. At 70,000 feet, it drops to 700 pounds per hour. At 74,600 feet, the engine will quit from oxygen starvation. In early stages of the program, as many as six wing mounts outsx flame notes flame occurred on a flight, with the new fill system and design of the 31 engine, flameouts have ceased to be a critical problem. Improved ignition systems ensures air restarts at High Altitude. In the first 20 months of the that the angel flew, logging over 5000 hours in the air, there were just too forced landings away from watertown. Both were equipped with the older engines landed at kirkland , air force base in albuquerque, new mexico. After each Development Flight , a careful accounting is made of fuel consumption. A special fuel, dubbed lighter fluid, was developed by Shell Oil Company specifically for the angel. The finished product was shipped to nevada and tank cars labeled lf1a. This blend will not boil at the low pressures encountered at altitude, yet will still give adequate air start. It is so in volatile that fire involatile that fire rarely follows a mishap. A simple 100 gallon tank was developed for extreme long lon flights. These pressurized tanks contain enough to carry the angel at cruising altitude, where they have no significant effect on speed or range. Even after the addition of an external drag chute, three times the normal oxygen supply, improved braking and autopilot, the final weight was within 10 pounds of the original proposal. The angel exceeded original performance limits in both ceiling and range. When the prototype angel was flown across death valley to watertown, lockheed found itself in the transportation business. Dc3 made almost daily flights to watertown with a handpicked crew of flight mechanics. The first unofficial name for watertown was paradise ranch. This description was dreamed up tongueincheek to encourage key personnel to accept assignment on the special project before they could be told what it involved. Anyone for golf . Many newcomers and guest the project involved in atomic powered aircraft and were astonished to find that they were to work with it. Two days later in a rainstorm, the angel went to 8000 feet. That day it took five attempts to land the plane because it would fly on idle engine thrust. The unusual bicycle landing gear designed for the lightest possible structure weighs 257 pounds. A conventional gear on a comparable aircraft would weigh 750 pounds and take room out of the wing that is vital for fuel. Wing mounted pogos drop off during takeoff to save weight. Weight and space that paid off an extra 1500 feet of altitude and 100 miles in cruising radius. As the operation at watertown grew in scope, more transportation was required. A daily military shuttle system was begun with c54s from burbank. In bad weather, one of these transports crashed into charleston peak. 14 members of the watertown project were aboard. The program has not been without other casualties. One angel crashed at watertown. Another disintegrated over an Indian Village in arizona. The third with a pilot aboard disappeared near watertown. By the time it was found, some information about the project reached the public, this nearly three years after his after its inception. That dust cloud is an actual crash. Rescue crews rushed to the end of the runway where an angel landed short. The pilot was uninjured. Emergency crews take no chances with leaking fuel. Salvage operations mean this fallen angel will soon fly again to rejoin its sister ships already in the air. This project has had fewer mishaps than is normal with new aircraft. Yet, unique Ground Handling equipment designed solely for the angel operates as well as this crash scene as it does on the flight line. Not all the difficulties at watertown have come from the angel herself. Extremes in weather, wind, sand, snow, cloudbursts, biting cold. The angels must be ready for tomorrows flight. It is almost all work and no play for the temporary desert dwellers at watertown. Just 72 Airline Miles distance is las vegas. However, none of watertowns workers can visit the bright lights or refreshing scenery. Security is just that rigid. Meanwhile, back at the ranch, molly, pool, a 16mm ranch, volleyball, pool, a 16mm movie in a converted mess hall are just about the only diversion. Remnants from another era of rugged desert pioneers. Here, as seen by few men, is what the world looks like from 70,000 feet. The scenes were photographed over arizona by one of the test pilots who have handled all development and production testing of the angel. Training of new pilots begins with the t33 for familiarization flights. The pilot must be able to hold the tbird inches in the air with the length of the lake so he can hold the angel at the same altitude until its broad wings move. He graduate to the angel in transition landings on the lake. A chase car and chase playing with two way radio are used during this phase of training. Seatbelts in the chase car are good insurance. The new angel pilot makes at least three landings with the pogos installed. She is a little easier to handle that way. Takeoffs are smooth from groom lake. A wide circle as the chase plane follows the leader. Now turning on final approach, says the instructor in the chase plane. Your airspeed is 92 knots. The chase car pulls into line and picks up speed. He is leveling off. Just a little high. And at 72 knots, here comes the stall. The best way to land the angel is in a full stall just like the with tail wheels. The broad, dry lake makes an ideal location for this type of transition training. After the landing has improved, the pogo safety pins are removed. The new pilot is on his own. Sometimes the drivers taxi right up to the hangar door. Not bad at all for an airplane that is supposed to be hard to handle on the ground. After a number of day flights, the new angel pilots are ready for night transition and long crosscountry flights. It is no accident that the complete angel and all of its intricate cargo can be disassembled and packed quickly. Ready for airborne transport. Everything about the angel can go aboard a cargo plane. Cameras and their dog houses, engines, Lab Equipment and supplies. Ground support equipment. And of course the angel. The result of foresight and planning. Engineering. Precise and rapid manufacturing. Thats it. What it is and what it can do. A vital chapter in modern american achievement. From the desert wasteland, it is a matter of hours to anywhere in the world where reconnaissance might be desired. The most important airplane, the most important cargo in the air today. It is in this single package, the inquisitive angel. Tv onrican history cspan3, exploring the people and events that tell the american story every weekend. Coming up this weekend, sunday morning at 8 30 eastern, torican street looking back the 1952 televised president ial campaign as with the journalism chair at the university mass. Ommunication lbj, very cold water, and the ad that changed american politics. P. M. At 6 00 p. M. Eastern, look at Arlington Cemetery in the box placed by woodrow wilson. And on the presidency and the life and legacy of theater roosevelt come exploring the american story. Watch American History tv this weekend on cspan3. You are watching tv, 48 hourf American History every weekend. Follow us on twitter for information on our schedule, and to keep up with the latest history news. This week, we are looking back to the state in history this date in history. , try to answer this question will more time. This is the fourth time i have had this question three times , and i will try to answer it as clearly as i can. Because the question you are asking is what kind of qualifications does dan quayle have to be president . What kind of qualifications do i have and what would i do in this kind of a situation, and what would i do in this situation . I would make sure that the people in the cabinet, the people who are advisors are called in, i will talk with them and i will work with them. I will know them on a firsthand basis, because as Vice President i will sit on the national secreted counsel, and i will know them because i will be coordinating the drug effort, i one of them because we will recreate the Space Council and i will be in charge of that. I will have daytoday activities with all of the people in government. And then, if that unfortunate situation happens, if that situation, which would be very tragic, happens, i will be prepared to carry out the responsibilities of the presidency of the United States of america. And i will be prepared to do that. I will be prepared, not only because of my service in the congress, but because of my ability to communicate and to lead. It is not just age, it is accomplishments, it is experience. I have far more experience than many others that sought the office of Vice President of this country. I have as much experience in the congress as jack kennedy did when he sought the presidency. I will be prepared to deal with the people in the bush administration, if that unfortunate event would ever occur. Senator benson . Senator, i served with jack kennedy. I knew jack kennedy. Jack was a friend of mine. Senator, you are no jack kennedy. Announcer follow us on social media cspan history for more clips and posts. Announcer during world war ii, a secret nazi program systematically murdered an estimated 250,000 people with mental and physical disabilities. Most were native born germans. Many were children. Next, patricia rice of the Holocaust Museum details the atrocities. She focuses on an institute in germany, one of several facilities used for the mass murder of individuals nazis viewed as undesirable. The National WorldWar Ii Museum in new orleans hosted this online discussiod