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Archives at The Museum of Flight


Slayton, Donald K., 1924-1993

 Person

Dates

  • Existence: 1924 March 1 - 1993 June 13

Biographical Note: Deke Slayton

Donald Kent "Deke" Slayton was a pilot for the United States Air Force, an aeronautical engineer, test pilot and then astronaut, who was selected as one of NASA's original Mercury Seven astronauts. He was born in Sparta, Wisconsin on March 1, 1924. During World War II, he joined the United States Army Air Force. Following the end of the war he attended the University of Minnesota and received his Bachelor of Science degree in aeronautical engineering in 1949. He later joined the United States Air Force where he was a pilot. His experience led him to be selected as one of the astronauts for the Mercury Program. He later became NASA's first Chief of the Astronaut Office and Director of Flight Crew Operations, responsible for NASA crew assignments. Slayton passed away on June 13, 1993 in League City, Texas.

Found in 8 Collections and/or Records:

Biographical Information Files - S

 Sub-Group
Scope and Contents Individuals whose names begin with S: Sachs, Donald G. [Aeronautical engineer, B-17 pilot] Brief resumeObituaries, 1998 Saint Exupery, Antoine de [Pilot, author] "The Spirit of Saint-Exupery," no source, undated"Wind, Sand and Wars," Air & Space, December 1994/January 1995 Sakai, Saburo [WWII Japanese fighter...

First International Space Docking Certificate

 Collection — Box: Assorted rare collections, Box 1, Folder: 2011-06-06 folder 1
Identifier: 2011-06-06-1
Content Description This collection consists of a single item, the "First International Space Docking Certificate," also known as the Space Magna Carta. The document, which is in both English and Russian and is dated July 17, 1975, commemorates the first international crewed space mission when an American Apollo module docked with a Soviet Soyuz capsule. This official government document was signed in space by the two entire crews, including Thomas P. Stafford, D. K. Slayton, Vance Brand, Alexei Leonov, and...

Terry Hammonds Percheron and Conestoga Collection

 Collection
Identifier: 2012-06-26
Abstract Terry Hammonds (born 1941) was a reporter who followed Space Services, Inc. (SSI) and wrote articles, as well as took photographs, about SSI's Percheron and Conestoga projects. The collection is comprised of audiovisual materials, including photographs, slides, negatives, and two (2) audiocassettes, as well as a small amount of textual materials relating to Space Services, Inc. and the 1981-1984 Percheron and Conestoga rocket programs.

Russian Transpolar Flight Collection

 Collection
Identifier: 2012-12-23
Abstract The Russian Transpolar Flight Collection primarily documents the June 1937 transpolar flight by Russian aviators Valery Chkalov, Georgii Baidukov, and V. Belydakov with photographs, clippings, audio-visual materials, and various textual materials. It also features a small amount of material about the July 1937 transpolar flight by Russian aviators M. Gromov, Sergei Danilin, and Andrei Yumashev, as well as general Russia-related research materials.

Deke Slayton ASTP Joint Operations Checklist

 Collection — Box: Slayton Collections Box 1, Folder: 2021-11-18
Identifier: 2021-11-18-1
Content Description The Deke Slayton ASTP Joint Operations Checklist consists of a single item: Slayton's personal copy of the "ASTP Reference Joint Operations Checklist," published by NASA's Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center, March 31, 1975. The checklist is an 80-page document with guidelines for docking and undocking the Apollo spacecraft with the Soyuz capsule during the Apollo-Soyuz Test Project. It also covers such topics as photo, television and movie ops; waste management; a fungi experiment; a microbial...

Deke Slayton Mercury Program Notebook

 Collection — Box: Slayton Collections Box 1
Identifier: 2011-12-03
Content Description The Deke Slayton Mercury Program Notebook is a small collection consisting of a single item: a spiral bound "steno"-style notebook of handwritten notes by Deke Slayton during the Mercury Program. Written on the cover is the text, “Astro Affairs Organization of 1st Astronaut Office." The contents of the notebook illustrate the organizational structure of the department, problems that needed to be addressed, future program plans, and policies that were to be published. Each of these topics are...

Deke Slayton Notebooks and Letter

 Collection — Multiple Containers
Identifier: 2008-04-12
Content Description The Deke Slayton Notebooks and Letter is a small collection consisting of planning notebooks used by Slayton ranging in date from 1963 to 1992 and letter that he received in 1959. The notebooks are primarily pocket-sized planners recording Slayton's activities from 1963-1976 and from 1991-1992. There are 181 notebooks in total, most of which cover one month of a year, arranged in small boxes each covering one calendar year with twelve notebooks per box. One notebook, not housed in a...

Charles L. Soellner NASA Collection

 Collection
Identifier: 1992-04-03
Overview The Charles L. Soellner NASA Collection documents the space programs of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration. The documents date from 1959 to 1975. The bulk of the materials are photographs and photomechancial prints mass-produced by NASA. The visual documentation and ephemera related to manned spaceflight missions were collected and assembled together in scrapbooks by Soellner.

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