THE PRIMARY GEMINI CREW, ASTRONAUTS VIRGIL "GUS GRISSOM AND JOHN W. YOUNG, WORKING OUT IN THE CAPSULE AT SIMULATED HIGH ALTITUDES IN A SPECIAL CHAMBER AT THE McDONNELL AIRCRAFT CORPORATION IN ST. LOUIS, MISSOURI (MCDONNELL IS THE CONTRACTOR FOR THE CAPSULE).




Initials



Script is copyright Reuters Limited. All rights reserved

Background: THE GEMINI SPACE CAPSULE THAT THE U.S. HOPES TO ORBIT EARLY NEXT YEAR ALREADY HAS BEEN "FLOWN" AT VARIOUS ALTITUDES BY ITS PERSPECTIVE CREW IN A LABORATORY AT ST. LOUIS, MISSOURI.

GRISSOM AND YOUNG AND THEIR BACK UP CREW, WALTER SCHIRRA, JR. AND THOMAS P. STAFFORD, HAVE BEEN FLYING SIMULATED FLIGHTS RANGING FROM 40,000 TO 120,000 FEET. EACH CREW SPENT ABOUT 4 1/2 HOURS DAILY IN THE SPACECRAFT WHICH, IT TURN, WAS INSIDE AN ALTITUDE CHAMBER. TELEVISION CAMERAS ENABLED TECHNICIANS TO WATCH THEIR REACTIONS. UNMANNED TESTS ARE ALSO RUN ON THE TWO-MAN CAPSULE, WHICH IS THE ACTUAL SPACECRAFT THAT WILL BE LAUNCHED, IT IS HOPED, ON THE FIRST QUARTER OF 1965.