Milton O. Thompson
| Milton O. Thompson | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| USAF / NASA Test Pilot | |
| Nationality | American |
| Status | Deceased |
| Born |
May 4, 1926 Crookston, Minnesota, U.S. |
| Died | August 6, 1993 (aged 67) Lancaster, California, U.S. |
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Other names
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Milton Orville Thompson |
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Other occupation
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Naval aviator, test pilot |
| University of Washington, B.S. 1953 | |
| Rank | Lieutenant Commander, USNR |
| Missions | X-15 |
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Mission insignia
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 |
| Awards |  |
Milton Orville Thompson (May 4, 1926 – August 6, 1993), (Lt Cmdr, USNR), better known as Milt Thompson, was an American naval officer and aviator, engineer, and NASA research pilot who was selected as an astronaut for the United States Air Force X-20 Dyna-Soar program in April 1960. After the Dyna-Soar program was cancelled on 10 December 1963, he remained a NASA research pilot, and went on to fly the X-15 rocket plane. He became Chief Engineer and Director of Research Projects during a long career at the NASA Dryden Flight Research Center.
Born in Crookston, Minnesota, on 4 May 1926, to parents Peter Thompson (1898–1960) and Alma Theresa Thompson (née Evenson; 1898–1977). Thompson began flying with the U.S. Navy as a pilot trainee at age 19. He served with duty in China and Japan during World War II.
Following six years of active Naval service, Thompson entered the University of Washington, in Seattle, Washington. He graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in Engineering in 1953. He remained in the Naval Reserve during college and continued flying, in Navy aircraft and in crop dusters and forest-spraying aircraft.
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