Ed Dwight
First African American in NASA astronaut training program; flew in 2024.
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via Wikipedia: Ed Dwight · see source
Edward Joseph Dwight Jr. has worked as a sculptor, author, test pilot, and astronaut. Chosen by President John F. Kennedy, he was the first Black American admitted to the Air Force training program that supplied NASA with astronauts. He did not join the Astronaut Corps, but in 2024 he flew on Blue Origin’s NS-25 mission, setting a record as the oldest person in space.
Biography
Ed Dwight was born on September 9, 1933, in the Kansas City, Kansas area, a place deeply divided by racial segregation. His mother was Georgia Baker Dwight, and his father, Edward Joseph Dwight Sr., played second base and centerfield for the Kansas City Monarchs and other Negro league teams from 1924 to 1937. When he was four, Dwight built a toy airplane from orange crates in his backyard. He was a bright, mechanically inclined child who loved reading and art, and he attended Our Lady of Perpetual Help grade school.
While delivering newspapers, he saw a photo of Dayton Ragland, a Black Air Force pilot from Kansas City, on the front page of The Call. Growing up under segregation, Dwight was stunned, thinking he had no idea Black pilots were even allowed near airplanes, and this moment inspired his career path. In 1951, he became the first African American male to graduate from Bishop Ward High School, a private Catholic school in Kansas City, Kansas. A National Honor Society member, he earned a scholarship to the Kansas City Art Institute but instead enrolled at Kansas City Junior College, graduating with an Associate of Arts in engineering in 1953.
Dwight enlisted in the U.S. Air Force that same year. He completed airman and cadet pre-flight training at Lackland Air Force Base in Texas, then primary flight training at Malden Air Base in Missouri. He earned a commission as a second lieutenant in 1955. While training to become a test pilot, he took night classes at Arizona State University, graduating cum laude with a Bachelor of Science in aeronautical engineering in 1957.
He later completed Air Force courses in experimental test piloting and aerospace research at Edwards Air Force Base in 1961 and 1962, and reached the rank of captain.
Personal life
He was the only Black artist on that project.
Did You Know?
- He flew on Blue Origin's NS-25 mission on May 19, 2024, becoming the oldest person in space at 90 years 8 months and 10 days.
- Dwight was made an honorary member of the U.S. Space Force in August 2020.
More in People Who Have Flown in Suborbital Spaceflight
Sources
Compiled from Wikipedia and the sources listed below. Text from Wikipedia is available under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is adapted from it.
- Wikipedia: Ed Dwight (CC BY-SA 4.0).
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