The Visual History of Edwards: AFFTC Heritage Wall Published Jan. 3, 2012 By Dr. Stephanie Smith AFFTC History Office EDWARDS AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. -- Located in the Air Force Flight Test Center History Office, the heritage wall is a one-of-a-kind representation of history and heritage, becoming an Edwards landmark since its completion in 1981. Social Actions Officer Maj. Ramon "Sandy" Sandoval constructed the wall of original artifacts from the remnants of the original Muroc settlement, aircraft flown here, and photographs in the History Office collection. Timbers on the wall came from homesteads in the town of Muroc, while other items, such as a 1930s-era bomb casing, were found on the range. Many of the artifacts, including a World War II-era rifle range target, have been well-preserved by the desert environment. A helmet worn by instrumentation engineer Don Thomson is displayed on the wall along with a photograph of him wearing it in 1943. He first arrived here as a Bell employee to work on the XP-63 program in December of 1942. Thomson played a major role in the design of new instrumentation systems, redefining "state-of-the art," and was widely known as Edwards' own, "Mr. Instrumentation." At the time of his retirement in May 1995, Thomson had worked in direct support of the flight test mission longer than any other employee in the base's history with more than 50 years of service. A pioneer of U.S. rocket plane flight and 1946 graduate of the Wright Patterson Test Pilot School, Maj. Frank K. "Pete" Everest appears wearing the official desert uniform, and what looks like an Indian headdress. Major Everest transferred to Edwards AFB in May 1950, where he was the Chief of the Flight Test Operations Division until 1956. The position carried the unofficial title "chief test pilot of the Air Force," and someone jokingly painted a full array of eagle feathers on his white crash helmet. Other pilots followed suit, although they only wore one or two feathers on their helmets. As the chief of flight test, Major Everest personally evaluated every aircraft then under test, from the famed Century Series of jet fighters (F-100, F 101, F-102, and so on), to multi-engine bombers like the B-36, B 47, and YB-52, cargo planes, and even the deeply classified U 2, flying more than 120 different aircraft types in all. Hollywood celebrities are also well-represented in the history of Edwards AFB and on the heritage wall. Due to the base's proximity to Hollywood and its long history of use in movies, a variety of celebrity photographs can be found on the heritage wall. Bob Hope appears in one. He visited what was then Muroc Army Air Field with his USO tour at least twice during World War II, the last time on Valentine's Day, 1945. Actress Rita Moreno appears in a photograph taken in 1956 with several Edwards test pilots, including Capt. Iven C. Kincheloe, record-setting pilot in the X 2 who participated in the development of all the Century-series aircraft tested at Edwards, and had been chosen as the Air Force's chief X 15 pilot before his death in flight testing of an F 104 in 1958. The photograph was taken shortly after Moreno's appearance in "The King and I," although she is best known for her role in "West Side Story." Many of the artifacts on the wall illustrate the rich history of flight test at Edwards AFB, such as the engraved plate from the joint program between the Air Force, NASA, U.S. Navy, and the North American Aviation Company, the X-15 hypersonic research program. In what was perhaps the most productive flight research program ever undertaken at Edwards, the X 15 flew over a period of nearly 10 years and set a number of unofficial world speed and altitude records. The plate was produced in honor of the last X 15 flight, which took place on October 24, 1968. Signed by all 12 X 15 pilots, the plate on the Edwards heritage wall is one of only 6 such plates ever produced. Air Force Flight Test Center commander Maj. Gen. Philip J. Conley, Jr. dedicated the heritage wall in March 1981. In April 1981, the wall received its first nationwide exposure, when NBC used it as a backdrop to conduct interviews prior to the first landing of the space shuttle Columbia at Edwards AFB. It has been featured in a number of other publications, including the Los Angeles Daily News and Air Force Material Command's Leading Edge magazine. And, in April 1990, the heritage wall appeared on the back cover of Airman magazine during a photograph of former Chief Historian Dr. James Young. Over the years, the heritage wall has been used by many filmmakers and television journalists as the background to interviews with major historical figures, among them famed aviator and X 1 pilot Brig. Gen. Chuck Yeager, USAF (Ret). The AFFTC heritage wall is a singular visual expression of Edwards history. Although not accessible to the general public, the wall is frequently used for orientation briefings by the AFFTC History Office welcoming new commanders and distinguished visitors with this effective capsule of historical legacy and the Edwards mission. To view the heritage wall, or to get more information, contact the History Office at 661-277-3871.