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Used by the USAF Aerospace Research Pilot School as a high-performance
trainer for future X-15 pilots in the early-1960s, this modified
F-104 featured rocket-augmented thrust for achieving zoom-climbs
to altitudes well in excess of 100,000 feet. The well-documented
crash of one of these three special aircraft was featured in
the classic aviation movie "The Right Stuff," and the
sole surviving airframe now sits on a pedestal as a permanent
display for the famed USAF Test Pilot School at Edwards Air Force
Base, California. |