Revell Historic Collectors Cards : The Air Power Series
Historic Collectors Cards - The Air Power Series was released in 1961
by Revell, Inc. and Science Program. The twelve-card series was distributed
with Revell Authentic Kit models. Two perforated cards were included with each
aircraft model from The Air Power Series. Each card measures
approximately 2.5 x 4 inches. The American Card Catalog reference is
UM26-5. Revell issued three different series of trading cards from 1960–1961.
The Air Power Series includes the "Boeing B-52 Bomber with the North American X-15." The scene was painted by Jack Leynnwood. The model and box artwork were repackaged for the Revell Jet Command series in 1964. The kit was later distributed by Atlantis Models.
NASA developed three of the experimental aircraft to investigate problems that pilots would encounter near the edge of space. On June 8, 1959, the X-15-1 was first dropped from Boeing NB-52A Stratofortress 52-003, The High and Mighty One, piloted by Charles Bock and Major Jack Allavie. Only three NB-52A were produced as test craft for Boeing and the U.S. Air Force.
The X-15-1 and X-15-2 aircraft were first piloted by Scott Crossfield. The
card text erroneously reports "altitudes approaching 100 miles." The highest
altitude achieved by the X-15-3 was 67 miles (108 km) on August 22, 1963. X-15
Flight 91 was piloted by Joseph A. Walker, who had previously crossed the
Kármán line on July 19, 1963. Walker was posthumously awarded NASA Astronaut
Wings on August 23, 2005.
The High and Mighty One
is displayed at the Pima Air & Space Museum in Tucson, Arizona. The
X-15-1 in the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center at Dulles International Airport in Virginia. The
X-15A-2
is displayed in the National Museum of the US Air Force at Wright-Patterson
Air Force Base in Ohio.
"The X-15 project is one of the major steps in America's program to conquer space. Goals of the project are to discover how well an aircraft can be con- trolled in near-space environment, and what problems are inherent in re-entering the atmosphere in a piloted aircraft. In order to gain as much altitude as possible without expending fuel from the X-15's limited supply, the aircraft is carried aloft nested under the wing of a modified B-52 Jet Bomber. In the fuselage of the bomber rides a crew of technicians who service the X-15 during the climb to launch altitude. Constant radio contact is maintained with the pilot of the X-15, and a closed circuit television monitors the aircraft. When the B-52 reaches the drop altitude of about 40,000 feet, the X-15 drops free of its mating pod, and as the pilot cuts in the rocket engines it noses up to its programmed objectives. The pilot has at his command an engine that develops 50,000 pounds of thrust, and burns 10,000 pounds of fuel per minute. The X-15 is capable of altitudes approaching 100 miles, and speed of 4000 miles per hour. This mother ship combination is one of the most significant steps in aviation history."
| The Air Power Series | |
|---|---|
| 1 | Northrop F-89D Scorpion |
| 2 | Boeing B-52 Bomber with the North American X-15 |
| 3 | Convair F-106A, Delta Dart |
| 4 | Boeing B-29 Bomber |
| 5 | Lockheed Hercules C-130A Combat Transport |
| 6 | North American B-25 Mitchell Bomber |
| 7 | Lockheed F-104A Starfighter |
| 8 | Convair B-58 Hustler |
| 9 | Convair B-36 Bomber |
| 10 | Republic F-105D Thunderchief |
| 11 | Boeing B-47 Bomber |
| 12 | Boeing KC-135 Stratotanker |