1. Early life and education

2. Career
    Navy service and General Electric  NASA 

3. Death

4. Legacy

5. See also

6. References

7. Bibliography

8. External links

Elliot McKay See Jr. (July 23, 1927{{spaced ndash}} February 28, 1966) was an American engineer, naval aviator, test pilot, and NASA astronaut. Selected in NASA's second group of astronauts in 1962,^[2] he was the prime command pilot for what would have been his first space flight, Gemini 9.

See was killed with Charles Bassett, his Gemini 9 crewmate, in a NASA trainer jet crash at the {{nowrap|St. Louis}} McDonnell Aircraft plant, where they were to take two weeks of space rendezvous {{nowrap|simulator training.}}

Early life and education

Born and raised in Dallas, Texas, See graduated from Highland Park High School {{nowrap|in 1945.^[3]{{rp|36}}}} He was active in the Boy Scouts of America and earned the rank of Eagle Scout.^[3] After initially attending The University of Texas where he was a member of Phi Kappa Psi, See received an appointment to the United States Merchant Marine Academy, from which he graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in 1949.^[3]{{rp|37}} He later obtained a Master of Science degree in engineering from UCLA in 1962.^[3]{{rp|44}}

He married Marilyn Denahy on September 30, 1954,^[3]{{rp|41}} and the couple had three children: Sally (b. 1956), Carolyn (b. 1957), and David {{nowrap|(b. 1962).^[4]}}

Career

Navy service and General Electric

After UCLA, See worked briefly for Lykes Brothers Steamship Company. He then applied at General Electric, the company his father worked for, and began work on September 1, 1949 at GE's Aircraft Gas Turbine Division in Boston. When the division moved to Cincinnati, Ohio, See made the move as well. He met his future wife, Mary Denahy, in Cincinnati. See and a roommate purchased a Luscombe Silvaire, which they took on some cross-country trips.^[5]{{rp|39-41}}

In 1952, while taking Marilyn on a trip in his airplane, the engine began to sputter. See attempted to land the aircraft on a short, unimproved field, but the tail wheel snagged a power line and forced the aircraft into the ground. See suffered deep cuts to his face which required plastic surgery. Marilyn escaped the crash with only minor injuries.^[5]{{rp|41}}

See later became a flight engineer at the Evendale, Ohio plant. A year later he was called up from the reserves to active service and assigned to Fighter Squadrоn VF-144, based out of San Diego, for 16 months. He spent four weeks in El Centro for training.^[5]{{rp|41}}

See was then assigned to {{USS|Boxer|CV-21|6}}, an aircraft carrier in the Mediterranean. His squadron flew the F9F-5 Panther. While on Boxer, he primarily focused on line maintenance, but also became proficient at landing on the carrier.^[5]{{rp|42}}

He served as a naval aviator from 1953 to 1956, then rejoined General Electric in 1956 after his tour of duty.^[5]{{rp|42}} He served as a project pilot for the development of the J79-8 engine used in the F4H aircraft. He also conducted powerplant flight tests on the J-47, J-73, J-79, CJ805 and CJ805 aft-fan engines, which involved flying in F-86, XF4D, F-104, F11F-1F, RB-66, F4H, and T-38 aircraft.^[2]

NASA

In 1962, See was selected to be in NASA's second group of astronauts, known as The New Nine. He helped develop guidance and navigation systems.^[6] He served as backup pilot for Gemini 5, with Neil Armstrong serving as backup command pilot. They were the first civilians selected for potential spaceflight.^[7] See was a CAPCOM in Houston during the Gemini 7/6A rendezvous mission in December 1965.

He was in line for prime crew pilot (second seat) for Gemini 8, but was promoted to command pilot (first seat) of Gemini 9.^[2][8]{{rp|138,168}} According to chief astronaut Deke Slayton's autobiography, Slayton did not assign See to Gemini 8 because he did not consider him physically capable of performing an extravehicular activity. Slayton further stated that he assigned See to Gemini 9 because he had become "sentimental" about getting him a flight, calling it "a bum decision."^[9][8]{{rp|167,168}}

Death

See and fellow astronaut Charles Bassett, the crew for Gemini 9, were killed on February 28, 1966, when their T-38 trainer jet crashed into McDonnell Aircraft Building 101, known as the McDonnell Space Center, located {{convert|1000|ft}} from Lambert Field airport in St. Louis, Missouri. See and Bassett were going to Building 101, where the Gemini spacecraft was built, for two weeks of rendezvous simulator training with their backup crew. They died within {{convert|500|ft}} of their spacecraft, and were buried in Arlington National Cemetery.^[1][10][11]

A NASA investigative panel later concluded that pilot error, caused by poor visibility due to bad weather, was the principal cause of the accident. The panel concluded that See was flying too low on his second approach, probably due to poor visibility. Slayton later expressed doubts about See's flying abilities, claiming that he flew too slowly and "wasn't aggressive enough."^[8]

The mission was launched three months later, in early June, as Gemini 9A. The shuffling of the Gemini crews after the deaths of See and Bassett affected crew selection for some of the early Apollo manned missions.^[8]

See logged more than 3,900 hours of flying time, including more than 3,300 in jet aircraft.^[2]

Legacy

See's name is inscribed on the Fallen Astronaut plaque placed on the Moon by Apollo 15 in 1971.^[12] His name is listed on the Space Mirror Memorial at the John F. Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex, dedicated in 1991.^[13] A family-approved account of See's life and career is in the 2003 book Fallen Astronauts by space historians Colin Burgess and {{nowrap|Kate Doolan.^[5]}} See was honored as a Distinguished Alumnus of Highland Park High School {{nowrap|in 2010.^[14]}}

See was a member of the Society of Experimental Test Pilots and an associate fellow of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics.^[2]

See also

• List of spaceflight-related accidents and incidents

References

Bibliography

• {{cite book |authorlink1=Codex Regius (author) |last1=Codex Regius |year=2014 |title=The Forgotten Astronauts: A rarely told Chapter of American Spaceflight History|location=Wiesbaden|publisher=CreateSpace |isbn=1-4996-1012-2}}

External links

• Astronautix biography of Elliot See
• {{Find a Grave|2723}}

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