Anticipating this date in 1959, Lawrence Earl Flint, Jr. must have been astonished by the advancements in aviation in less than twenty years. Entering the United States Navy he was soon designated a Naval Aviator two days before the Imperial Japanese Navy attacked the U.S. fleet at Pearl Harbor on December 7. Farthest from his mind at the time would be his future opportunity to set three FAI World Altitude Records by flying to the edge of space in a McDonnell YF4H-1 Phantom II.
Accelerating from level flight at 47,000' with afterburner to Mach 2.5, Commander Flint pulled up into a 45° climb and continued to 90,000'. He had to shut down the Phantom’s two jet engines to prevent them from overheating in the thin atmosphere. He continued on a ballistic trajectory to 98,556 feet'. At the time, this was just short of the 100,000' feet that delineated the beginning of space. Diving back through 70,000', Flint restarted the engines and flew back to Edwards AFB, California.
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