The assertion that “they were all wearing one-piece suits ... a shiny silverish-gray color,” “trimmed in ... maroon-like cording”[142] is a likely reference to a standard issue, gray, Air Force flightsuit used to outfit the dummies and red duct-type tape used in the tests that prevented air from filling the flightsuit (see fig. 30).[143] The recollection that “crewmembers” had “bandages”[144] on their bodies were likely references to tape and nylon webbing used to prevent flailing of a dummy’s arms and legs during tests.[145] A reference to a bandage “around his [the crewmember’s] midsection and partially over his shoulder”[146] is a likely reference to the standard B-4 or B-5 parachute with chest and shoulder straps worn by the dummies.[147]
Fig. 75. “Its uniform was torn in a couple spots ... their uniforms were in pretty sad shape”—witnesses description of secondhand flightsuits that were used repeatedly on tests; tears and other damage were common. In this photo, 1st Lt. Raymond A. Madson “rigs” a dummy to its suspension rack for project High Dive at Holloman AFB, N.M. (U.S. Air Force photo)
Fig. 76. A witness described at least one person at a “crash” site wearing a pith helmet. In the 1950s, the pith helmet was part of the Air Force uniform and was often worn on balloon launches and recoveries. In this publicity photo from On the Threshold of Space, Air Force members at Holloman AFB who were extras in the film can be seen wearing pith helmets. (also see [figure 49])
The “Craft.” In what appears to be a clear reference to a balloon, was that when he saw the crashed vehicle he “thought it was a blimp.”[148] Additional descriptions of cables that “went from one kind of a package of components to another kind of package” and a “metal box” were likely references to the balloon control package that was positioned on top of the dummy suspension rack.[149] A further reference to a balloon payload is the statement that on a hot New Mexico day the crashed vehicle was “ice cold, it felt like it just came out of the freezer.”[150] This accurately describes a physical condition known as “cold soaking” common to high altitude payloads that had recently been exposed to sub-zero temperatures of the upper atmosphere.
Military Aircraft. The witness also described two aircraft of the same type used for anthropomorphic dummy recoveries as having been involved in the activity he witnessed. One aircraft was described as a “C-47” and another as an “observation aircraft ... a high-winged aircraft.”[151] These were a C-47 and a L-20 aircraft used extensively by the Balloon Branch during the mid 1950s for tracking and recovering anthropomorphic dummy balloon flights.[152] This testimony also described aircraft that were typically overhead during a recovery and an established procedure of landing on a rural road or in a field to reach isolated balloon launch or recovery locations.[153]
Fig. 77. “An observation aircraft ... a high-winged aircraft”—a witness’s probable reference to a U.S. Air Force L-20 aircraft used extensively by Holloman AFB crews to track and recover anthropomorphic dummies. (U.S. Air Force photo)
