"Richard Lamb" wrote ...

BTW, isn't the X-15 hanging in the Smithsonian the one that did the
last speed dash - kinda melted in places?

I'm not sure which one's in the Smithsonian. It's interesting to note that
at the end of the program the total non-capture flight time for the whole
fleet was only 30 hours. The hours don't add up very fast when the average
flight times are eight to ten minutes ... even if the distances cover a
couple of states. Their normal high speed run dropped over northern Nevada
and landed at Edwards about twelve minutes later.

Rich