Milton Orville Thompson Milton Orville Thompson ( usually referred to as Milt Thompson ) ( 4 May 1926 – 6 August 1993 ) was a 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 . Early life . Born in Crookston , Minnesota , on 4 May 1926 , Thompson began flying with the U . S . Navy as a pilot trainee at age 19 . He served with duty in China and Japan . Following six years of active Naval service , Thompson entered the University of Washington , in Seattle , Washington . He graduated in 1953 with a Bachelor of Science degree in Engineering . He remained in the Naval Reserve during college and continued flying , in Navy aircraft and in crop dusters and forest - spraying aircraft . After graduating , Thompson became a flight test engineer for the Boeing Aircraft Company in Seattle . During his two years at Boeing , he flew on the sister aircraft of Dryden ' s B - 52B air - launch vehicle . Test pilot . Thompson was hired as an engineer at the flight research facility on 19 March 1956 , when it was still under the auspices of the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics ( NACA ) . He became a research pilot in January 1958 . On 16 August 1963 , Thompson became the first person to fly a lifting body , the lightweight NASA M2 - F1 . The plywood and steel - tubing prototype was flown as a glider after being released from an R4D tow plane . He flew it a total of 47 times , and also made the first five flights of the all - metal Northrop M2 - F2 lifting body , beginning 12 July 1966 . Lifting bodies were wingless vehicles designed to generate lift and aerodynamic stability from the shape of their bodies . They were flown at Dryden to study and validate the concept of safely maneuvering and landing a low lift - over - drag vehicle designed for reentry from space . Data from the program helped in the development of the Space Shuttle . Thompson was also one of the 12 NASA , Air Force , and Navy pilots to fly the North American X - 15 rocket - powered research aircraft between 1959 and 1968 . He began flying X - 15s on 29 October 1963 , only 74 days after his first Lifting Body flight . He flew the aircraft 14 times during the following two years , reaching a maximum speed of 3 , 712 mph ( Mach 5 . 48 ) and a peak altitude of 214 , 100 feet on separate flights . The X - 15 program provided a wealth of data on aerodynamics , thermodynamics , propulsion , flight controls , and the physiological aspects of high - speed , high - altitude flight . Thompson was one of elite group of eight pilots who tested the paraglider research vehicle NASA Paresev . In 1962 the U . S . Air Force selected Thompson to be the only civilian test pilot to fly in the X - 20 Dyna - Soar program that was intended to launch a human into Earth orbit and recover with a horizontal ground landing . The program was canceled before construction of the vehicle began . Administrator . Thompson was also a member of NASA ' s Space Transportation System Technology Steering Committee during the 1970s . In this role he led the effort to design the Orbiters for power - off landings rather than increase weight with air - breathing engines for airliner - type landings . His committee work earned him NASA ' s highest award , the Distinguished Service Medal . Thompson concluded his active flying career in 1967 , becoming Chief of Research Projects two years later . In 1975 he was appointed Chief Engineer and retained the position until his death on 6 August 1993 . Awards . Thompson was a member of the Society of Experimental Test Pilots , and received the organization ' s Iven C . Kincheloe Award as the Outstanding Experimental Test Pilot of 1966 for his research flights in the M2 lifting bodies . He also received the 1967 Octave Chanute Award from the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics ( AIAA ) for his lifting - body research . The National Aeronautic Association named Thompson as one of its 1990 " Elder Statesman of Aviation " . This distinction , given since 1955 , highlights contributions " of significant value over a period of years " in the field of aeronautics . Thompson wrote several technical papers , was a member of NASA ' s Senior Executive Service , and received several NASA awards . His 1992 book , " At the Edge of Space " described the X - 15 flight program . In 1993 he was inducted into the Aerospace Walk of Honor . Thompson was married to Therese Beytebiere ; they had one daughter and four sons . Thompson ' s parents were Peter Thompson and Alma T . Thompson ; his siblings were Adeline , Fay and Janice .