Joseph Henry Engle
Encyclopedia
- This is an article about the astronaut Joe Engle. For the baseball player, see Joe EngelJoe Engelthumb|Joe Engel, 1913Joseph William Engel was an American right-handed pitcher and scout in Major League Baseball who spent nearly his entire career with the Washington Senators, and went on to become a promoter and team owner in the minor leagues. He was born in Washington, D.C...
.
Joe Henry Engle (born August 26, 1932 in Chapman
Chapman, Kansas
Chapman is a city in Dickinson County, Kansas, United States. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 1,393.-History:The first settlement was made at Chapman in 1868, and the same year Jackman's mill was built on Chapman creek a little northeast of the present town. James Streeter and S. M...
, Kansas
Kansas
Kansas is a US state located in the Midwestern United States. It is named after the Kansas River which flows through it, which in turn was named after the Kansa Native American tribe, which inhabited the area. The tribe's name is often said to mean "people of the wind" or "people of the south...
) is a retired U.S. Air Force colonel and a former NASA
NASA
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration is the agency of the United States government that is responsible for the nation's civilian space program and for aeronautics and aerospace research...
astronaut
Astronaut
An astronaut or cosmonaut is a person trained by a human spaceflight program to command, pilot, or serve as a crew member of a spacecraft....
. He was married to the late Mary Catherine Lawrence of Mission Hills, Kansas
Mission Hills, Kansas
Mission Hills is a city in Johnson County, Kansas, United States. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 3,498. The city is a suburb of Kansas City, Missouri, which is adjacent to the east, across the aptly named State Line Road. Mission Hills was originally developed by noted Kansas...
and has two grown children and one stepchild. He is currently married to Jeanie Carter Engle of Houston, Texas
Houston, Texas
Houston is the fourth-largest city in the United States, and the largest city in the state of Texas. According to the 2010 U.S. Census, the city had a population of 2.1 million people within an area of . Houston is the seat of Harris County and the economic center of , which is the ...
. Engle's recreational interests include flying (including World War II fighter aircraft), big game hunting, back-packing and athletics. He received a bachelor of science
Bachelor of Science
A Bachelor of Science is an undergraduate academic degree awarded for completed courses that generally last three to five years .-Australia:In Australia, the BSc is a 3 year degree, offered from 1st year on...
in Aeronautical Engineering from the University of Kansas
University of Kansas
The University of Kansas is a public research university and the largest university in the state of Kansas. KU campuses are located in Lawrence, Wichita, Overland Park, and Kansas City, Kansas with the main campus being located in Lawrence on Mount Oread, the highest point in Lawrence. The...
in 1955. He was a member of the Society of Experimental Test Pilots
Society of Experimental Test Pilots
The Society of Experimental Test Pilots is an international organization that seeks to promote air safety and contributes to aeronautical advancement by promoting sound aeronautical design and development; interchanging ideas, thoughts and suggestions of the members, assisting in the professional...
. Engle helped to flight test the joint NASA-Air Force X-15 rocket airplane. During the course of testing, Engle earned his USAF astronaut wings, a Distinguished Flying Cross and other awards. Engle was one of the first astronauts in the Space Shuttle
Space Shuttle
The Space Shuttle was a manned orbital rocket and spacecraft system operated by NASA on 135 missions from 1981 to 2011. The system combined rocket launch, orbital spacecraft, and re-entry spaceplane with modular add-ons...
program, having flight tested the Space Shuttle Enterprise
Space Shuttle Enterprise
The Space Shuttle Enterprise was the first Space Shuttle orbiter. It was built for NASA as part of the Space Shuttle program to perform test flights in the atmosphere. It was constructed without engines or a functional heat shield, and was therefore not capable of spaceflight...
in 1977. He was commander of the second orbital test flight of the Space Shuttle Columbia
Space Shuttle Columbia
Space Shuttle Columbia was the first spaceworthy Space Shuttle in NASA's orbital fleet. First launched on the STS-1 mission, the first of the Space Shuttle program, it completed 27 missions before being destroyed during re-entry on February 1, 2003 near the end of its 28th, STS-107. All seven crew...
in 1981.
Background
Engle received his commission in the Air Force through the Reserve Officers Training Program at the University of KansasUniversity of Kansas
The University of Kansas is a public research university and the largest university in the state of Kansas. KU campuses are located in Lawrence, Wichita, Overland Park, and Kansas City, Kansas with the main campus being located in Lawrence on Mount Oread, the highest point in Lawrence. The...
, which he chose as Kansas State University
Kansas State University
Kansas State University, commonly shortened to K-State, is an institution of higher learning located in Manhattan, Kansas, in the United States...
did not offer an aeronautical engineering degree. While in school he was a member of the Professional Engineering Fraternity Theta Tau
Theta Tau
ΘΤ Fraternity was founded in 1904 by four engineering students at the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis. As defined by the fraternity, the purpose of Theta Tau is to develop and maintain a high standard of professional interest among its members, and to unite them in a strong bond of...
, and decided to become a test pilot
Test pilot
A test pilot is an aviator who flies new and modified aircraft in specific maneuvers, known as flight test techniques or FTTs, allowing the results to be measured and the design to be evaluated....
. While working at Cessna Aircraft during the summer, he learned how to fly from a fellow draftsman.
Engle entered flying school in 1957. He flew the F-100 Super Sabre
F-100 Super Sabre
The North American F-100 Super Sabre was a supersonic jet fighter aircraft that served with the United States Air Force from 1954 to 1971 and with the Air National Guard until 1979. The first of the Century Series collection of USAF jet fighters, it was the first USAF fighter capable of...
with the 474th Fighter Day Squadron and the 309th Tactical Fighter Squadron at George Air Force Base
George Air Force Base
George Air Force Base is a former United States Air Force base located within city limits, 8 miles northwest of central Victorville, California, about 75 miles northeast of Los Angeles, California. The facility was closed by the Base Realignment and Closure 1992 commission at the end of the Cold...
, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
. Chuck Yeager
Chuck Yeager
Charles Elwood "Chuck" Yeager is a retired major general in the United States Air Force and noted test pilot. He was the first pilot to travel faster than sound...
recommended Engle for USAF Test Pilot School, and he was later assigned to the second class of the Air Force Aerospace Research Pilot School (ARPS), despite his reluctance to leave "stick and rudder" flying for a space capsule
Space capsule
A space capsule is an often manned spacecraft which has a simple shape for the main section, without any wings or other features to create lift during atmospheric reentry....
.
After serving as a test pilot in the Fighter Test Group at Edwards Air Force Base
Edwards Air Force Base
Edwards Air Force Base is a United States Air Force base located on the border of Kern County, Los Angeles County, and San Bernardino County, California, in the Antelope Valley. It is southwest of the central business district of North Edwards, California and due east of Rosamond.It is named in...
, California, Engle was a test pilot in the X-15 research program at Edwards from June 1963 until his assignment to the Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center
Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center
The Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center is the National Aeronautics and Space Administration's center for human spaceflight training, research and flight control. The center consists of a complex of 100 buildings constructed on 1,620 acres in Houston, Texas, USA...
. Engle had applied with fellow ARPS student Michael Collins
Michael Collins (astronaut)
Michael Collins is a former American astronaut and test pilot. Selected as part of the third group of fourteen astronauts in 1963, he flew in space twice. His first spaceflight was Gemini 10, in which he and command pilot John Young performed two rendezvous with different spacecraft and Collins...
to the third NASA astronaut group, but the Air Force withdrew Engle's NASA application and instead chose him to replace Robert M. White
Robert M. White
Major General Robert Michael "Bob" White was a military aircraft test pilot and a major general in the United States Air Force...
in the X-15 program, which pleased Engle.
Engle's parents witnessed his flight of 29 June 1965, which exceeded an altitude of 50 miles (80 km) and qualified him for USAF astronaut wings; he again exceeded 50 miles twice during his career of 16 flights. Despite what he later called "the best flying job in the world", Engle decided to apply again to NASA as he expected to be rotated to another Air Force assignment within a year and hoped to go to the Moon.
He has flown over 155 different types of aircraft (25 different fighters) during his career: logging more than 12,400 hours flight time; 9,000 in jet aircraft.
His sister is the aunt of Laura Beth Webster which is the mother of Josh, Luke, and Caleb Webster
NASA career
Engle was one of 19 astronauts selected by NASA in April 1966. He was back-up lunar module pilot for the Apollo 14Apollo 14
Apollo 14 was the eighth manned mission in the American Apollo program, and the third to land on the Moon. It was the last of the "H missions", targeted landings with two-day stays on the Moon with two lunar EVAs, or moonwalks....
mission and was due to land on the moon as lunar module pilot for Apollo 17
Apollo 17
Apollo 17 was the eleventh and final manned mission in the American Apollo space program. Launched at 12:33 a.m. EST on December 7, 1972, with a three-member crew consisting of Commander Eugene Cernan, Command Module Pilot Ronald Evans, and Lunar Module Pilot Harrison Schmitt, Apollo 17 remains the...
, but was replaced by geologist Harrison Schmitt
Harrison Schmitt
Harrison Hagan "Jack" Schmitt is an American geologist, a retired NASA astronaut, university professor, and a former U.S. senator from New Mexico....
after Apollo 18
Apollo 18
Apollo 18 may refer to:* One of the canceled Apollo missions of the American Apollo lunar program* The officially unnumbered Apollo spacecraft used in the Apollo–Soyuz Test Project* Apollo 18 , a 1992 album by They Might Be Giants...
was cancelled with pressure from the scientific community to have a scientist explore the Moon, and not just test pilots who had been given geology training. As part of the crew changes, Engle was briefly considered to serve as the Apollo 14 prime lunar module pilot, a job which eventually went to Edgar Mitchell. According to Engle, Deke Slayton
Deke Slayton
Donald Kent Slayton , better known as Deke Slayton, was an American World War II pilot and later, one of the original NASA Mercury Seven astronauts....
asked him whether he would prefer to fly on Skylab
Skylab
Skylab was a space station launched and operated by NASA, the space agency of the United States. Skylab orbited the Earth from 1973 to 1979, and included a workshop, a solar observatory, and other systems. It was launched unmanned by a modified Saturn V rocket, with a mass of...
, Apollo-Soyuz, or the Space Shuttle; Engle responded that he would prefer the Shuttle as it was an airplane.
He was commander of one of the two crews that flew the Space Shuttle Approach and Landing Test Flights
Approach and Landing Tests
-Crew 2:This crew later flew on STS-2.-Shuttle Carrier Aircraft:In addition to the two assigned shuttle crews, who would alternate crewing the orbiter, a single flight crew was attached to the Boeing 747 Shuttle Carrier Aircraft for the entire program:...
from June through October 1977. The Space Shuttle Enterprise
Space Shuttle Enterprise
The Space Shuttle Enterprise was the first Space Shuttle orbiter. It was built for NASA as part of the Space Shuttle program to perform test flights in the atmosphere. It was constructed without engines or a functional heat shield, and was therefore not capable of spaceflight...
was carried to 25,000 feet on top of the Boeing 747
Boeing 747
The Boeing 747 is a wide-body commercial airliner and cargo transport, often referred to by its original nickname, Jumbo Jet, or Queen of the Skies. It is among the world's most recognizable aircraft, and was the first wide-body ever produced...
carrier aircraft, and then released for its two minute glide flight to landing. In this series of flight tests, Engle evaluated the Orbiter handling qualities and landing characteristics, and obtained the stability and control, and performance data in the subsonic flight envelope for the Space Shuttle. He was the back-up commander for STS-1
STS-1
STS-1 was the first orbital flight of NASA's Space Shuttle program. Space Shuttle Columbia launched on 12 April 1981, and returned to Earth on 14 April, having orbited the Earth 37 times during the 54.5-hour mission. It was the first American manned space flight since the Apollo-Soyuz Test Project...
, the first orbital test flight of Space Shuttle Columbia. Together with pilot Richard Truly he flew as commander on the second flight of the Space Shuttle, STS-2
STS-2
STS-2 was a Space Shuttle mission conducted by NASA, using the Space Shuttle Columbia. The mission launched on 12 November 1981. It was the second shuttle mission overall, and was also the second mission for Columbia...
. He was also mission commander on STS-51-I
STS-51-I
STS-51-I was the twentieth mission of NASA's Space Shuttle program and the sixth flight of Space Shuttle Discovery. During the mission, Discovery deployed three communications satellites into orbit...
and logged over 225 hours in space.
Engle is the only human being to have flown two different types of winged vehicles in space, the X-15 and the Space Shuttle
Space Shuttle
The Space Shuttle was a manned orbital rocket and spacecraft system operated by NASA on 135 missions from 1981 to 2011. The system combined rocket launch, orbital spacecraft, and re-entry spaceplane with modular add-ons...
. He is the only astronaut to manually fly the shuttle through reentry and landing.
He served as Deputy Associate Administrator for Manned Space Flight at NASA headquarters from March 1982 to December 1982. He retained his astronaut flight status and returned to the Johnson Space Center in January 1983. He also participated in the Challenger disaster
STS-51-L
STS-51-L was the twenty-fifth flight of the American Space Shuttle program, which marked the first time an ordinary civilian, schoolteacher Christa McAuliffe, had flown aboard the Space Shuttle. The mission used Space Shuttle Challenger, which lifted off from the Launch Complex 39-B on 28 January...
investigation in 1986, and would do other consulting work on the Shuttle well into the 1990s.
Post-NASA career
Joe Engle retired from the USAF on November 30, 1986. On December 1,subsequently promoted to the rank of Major General. In 1986 he was appointed to the Kansas Air National Guard and 1992, he was inducted into the Aerospace "Walk of Honor". On July 21, 2001, Engle was enshrined at Dayton, Ohio, in the National Aviation Hall of Fame class of 2001, along with USAF ace Robin Olds, Marine Corps ace Marion Carl, and Albert Ueltschi. In December, 2001, he was inducted into the Astronaut Hall of Fame in Florida.He is currently an aerospace and sporting goods consultant, and continues an active flying career in high performance aircraft.