E62-9303 Investigators pore over the site of the nose-first, high-impact JF-104A crash that left this large crater in the desert near Edwards Air Force Base in December 1962. NASA test pilot Milton O. Thompson ejected from this aircraft on Dec. 20, 1962, after an asymmetrical flap condition made the jet uncontrollable. December 1962 NASA Photo NASA Identifier: 412117main_E62-9303