Museum Stories: The Rogallo Wing and Gemini Tow Test Vehicle

While hunting through my Udvar-Hazy trip photos for something to use in my Flying Tigers companion story on the Westland Lysander, I came across this photo which I’d completely forgotten about.

My photo.

I generally find space capsule exhibits kind of boring. Oh, they’re interesting to look at and visualize the cramped quarters that astronauts have had to work with, and the technology used to keep humans alive where we were never meant to be is fascinating, but with a couple of notable exceptions, spacecraft don’t fly. At best they mostly just fall with style. Or without style, in the case of most capsules. What’s really interesting to me are the rockets that propel the capsule up there.
But this… thing, the Rogallo Paraglider and Gemini capsule Tow Test Vehicle, while its flight characteristics could only charitably be categorized as falling with style, at least flew. More or less. Maybe less, since the concept never really worked as intended. Something about inflatable gliders and high winds not being a happy mixture.
Amy Shira Teitel did a great explainer video a couple of years ago on her Vintage Space channel.


Mostly I think I like this combo because it’s weird, and it’s from the ‘60s space and aviation programs when people weren’t afraid to take some risks and try some crazy experiments. With the budget numbers and risk averse culture that seems to inhabit NASA anymore, it’s tough to imagine anyone greenlighting this concept, much less signing off on the cobbled together training craft built by Milt Thompson and Neil Armstrong.



All the risk now seems left to private industry. Maybe that’s better. I can’t help but notice that while NASA’s Orion capsule still hasn’t left the ground, and will ride non-recoverable rockets when it does, SpaceX is busy certifying their Dragon capsule for human flight and recovering more rocket parts. Scaled Composites is drop testing their new and improved SpaceShip Two and expects to be doing engine runs this year. At least someone’s still trying new things, and willing to take some risks.