Astronautics and Aeronautics, 1967 - NASA's History Office

ASTRONAUTICS AND AERONAUTICS, 1967 Jdy 7
Hawaii earth stations. Fixed-price contracts proposed included
$7,600,000 to Philco-Ford Corp. for four antenna subsystems ;
$4,500,000 to Raytheon Co. for four ground communications equipment
subsystems ; and $1,015,000 to Cutler-Hammer, Inc., for four low-noise
receiver subsystems. Construction on three new earth stations and expan-
sion of facilities at Hawaii station were expected to begin in late 1967.
(ComSatCorp Release 67-36)
0 H. Frank Hann became Director of the Financial Management Div., Office
of Administration, NASA Hq. He had been Acting Director since April 3.
(NASA Ann, 7/12/67)
Jdy 8-9: The 1967 Soviet air show-first in six years-was held at Domode
dovo Airport near Moscow. Program included aerial displays and ground
exhibits of seven new types of supersonic jet fighters, including one
VTOL and two variable-sweep-wing aircraft similar to US. F-111 ; Proton
and Vostok spacecraft; World War I1 fighters; and four-engine IL-62
commercial aircraft. U.S.S.R. claimed that its new variable-sweep-wing
models-a fighter and a missile launcher-were first and lightest in the
world and could fly at mach 1 at sea level and mach 2 at higher altitudes.
New VTOL aircraft was reportedly capable of rising vertically 130-160
ft before beginning forward flight. Western sources speculated that
absence of any large new bombers suggested that U.S.S.R., like US., was
concentrating on versatile missile-launching aircraft which had long-
range striking power. (Reuters, NYT, 7/9/67, 17; W Post, 7/10/67,
A10; Av Wk, 7/24/67,38--44)
Jdy 9: USN decision to study a ship-based antimissile missile system [see
July 31 was praised by Hanson Baldwin in the New York Times. “Stra-
tegically and tactically the role of the Navy has been transformed by the
nuclear age; the depths of the sea, the space above the atmosphere and
every part of every land mass on earth are now accessible to modern naval
power.” Proposed SABMIS system would be especially effective because:
(1) nuclear submarines’ ability to remain completely submerged indefi-
nitely gave them unequaled defense invulnerability ; (2) submarine-
launched ballistic missile would draw enemy attack toward seas rather
than toward populated land as land-based missiles do; (3) sea-based
system would be more effective against enemy missile containing several
warheads, each capable of maneuvering along different trajectory ; and
(4) system would be able to intercept enemy missiles in midcourse,
rather than terminal phase. (Baldwin, NYT, 7/9/67)
Effect of sonic boom on SST flight routes and sales prospects was discussed
by Secretary of Transportation Alan S. Boyd, FAA Administrator William
F. McKee, and Director of SST Development BJG J. C. Maxwell (USAF,
Ret.) in May and June testimony released by House Committee on
Appropriations’ Subcommittee on the Dept. of Transportation. Condi-
tions under which supersonic flight would be permitted over populated
land areas had still not been determined, Gen. Maxwell explained. “The
available sonic boom data indicate that the present SST design may
possibly be restricted from supersonic operations over populated land
areas . . . [and we] have based our SST program decisions on the con-
servative assumption that this design will be operated primarily on
water.”
DOT did not have to force the American public to tolerate sonic booms
to make SST program an economic success, Secretary Boyd assured the
Committee. “We are satisfied that we can have a . . . highly successful
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