Chanute Air Force Base Patch' title='Chanute Air Force Base Patch' />Gus Grissom Wikipedia. Gus Grissom. NASAAstronaut. Nationality. United States. Born. Virgil Ivan Grissom1. April 3, 1. 92. 6Mitchell, Indiana, U. S. Died. January 2. Cape Kennedy, Florida, U. S. Resting place. Arlington National Cemetery. Other occupation. Test pilot. Purdue University, B. S. 1. 95. 0Air Force Institute of Technology, B. Make your Flight Plan at SkyVector. SkyVector is a free online flight planner. Flight planning is easy on our large collection of Aeronautical Charts, including. USAF Serial Numbers Last revised October 23, 2017. Click on the below text to view this page. SAC, Numbered Air Force, Air Division, Wing and Squadron Patches. Date 122809 Time 549 AM Charles F. Anderson 394th Bomb Group 584th Bomb Squadron 3 years service Radio Communications School 1943 Chanute Field, Illinois. Table of Contents Introduction Background Of United States Air Force, Issue of U. S. Medals to Veterans, Retirees, and Their Families Wear of Medals, Insignia and the. Kilauea Mount Etna Mount Yasur Mount Nyiragongo and Nyamuragira Piton de la Fournaise Erta Ale. S. 1. 95. 6Rank. Lieutenant colonel, USAFTime in space. Selection. 19. 59 NASA Group 1. Missions. Mercury Redstone 4, Gemini 3, Apollo 1. Mission insignia. Awards. Distinguished Flying Cross. Congressional Space Medal of Honor. NASA Distinguished Service Medal. Lieutenant Colonel. Virgil Ivan Gus Grissom April 3, 1. January 2. 7, 1. 96. NASAProject Mercuryastronauts, a United States Air Forcetest pilot, and a mechanical engineer. He was the second American to fly in space, and the first member of the NASA Astronaut Corps to fly in space twice. Grissom enlisted in the United States Army Air Forces as an aviation cadet during World War II. As the end of the war neared, Grissom sought to be discharged and married Betty Moore. Grissom enrolled at Purdue University, graduating with a bachelors in mechanical engineering in 1. He reenlisted in the United States Air Force, earning his pilots wings in 1. Grissom flew over 1. Korean War, earning the Distinguished Flying Cross and the Air Medal with an oak leaf cluster. He was reassigned to work as a flight instructor at Bryan Air Force Base. He attended the U. S. Air Force Institute of Technology for a year and earned a bachelors degree in aeromechanics. Selected as one of the Mercury Seven astronauts, Grissom was the pilot of the second American suborbital flight, in the Liberty Bell 7. The hatch of the craft blew off and filled with water, causing it to sink to the bottom of the ocean. His next flight was in the Project Gemini Program in a craft named the Molly Brown, which was a successful mission. He was killed along with fellow astronauts Ed White and Roger Chaffee during a pre launch test for the Apollo 1 mission at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station then known as Cape Kennedy, Florida. He was the first of the Mercury Seven to die. He was a recipient of the Distinguished Flying Cross and, posthumously, the Congressional Space Medal of Honor. BiographyeditFamily and backgroundeditGrissom was born in Mitchell, Indiana, on April 3, 1. Dennis David Grissom and Cecile King Grissom. His father was a signalman for the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad, and his mother a homemaker. His older sister died shortly before his birth, and he was followed by three younger siblings, Wilma, Norman and Lowell. As a child he attended the local Church of Christ, where he remained a lifelong member. He joined the Boy Scouts Troop 4. Star Scout. 3Grissom attended public elementary schools, and went on to Mitchell High School. He met and befriended Betty Lavonne Moore, his future wife, at school through their extracurricular activities. His boy scout troop carried the American flag at school basketball games, while she played the drum in the high school band. His first jobs were delivering newspapers for the Indianapolis Star in the morning, and the Bedford Times in the evening. He also worked at a local meat market, a service station, and a clothing store. He occasionally spent time at a local airport in Bedford, Indiana, where he first became interested in flying. A local attorney who owned a small plane would take him on flights for a 1 fee and taught him the basics of flying. Military careereditWorld War IIedit. Gus Grissom in his Air Force uniform. World War II broke out while Grissom was still in high school, and he was eager to enlist upon graduation. He enlisted as an aviation cadet in the United States Army Air Forces, and completed an entrance exam in November 1. Grissom graduated from high school in 1. United States Army at Fort Benjamin Harrison, Indiana, on August 8, 1. He was sent to Sheppard Field in Wichita Falls, Texas, for basic flight training, after which he was sent to Brooks Field in San Antonio, Texas, and then, in January 1. Boca Raton Army Airfield in Florida as a clerk. Grissom sought to be discharged as the war neared its end, and married Betty Moore on July 6, 1. They married at the First Baptist Church in Mitchell while on leave, and his brother Norman served as his best man. He was discharged from the army in November 1. Grissom took a job at Carpenter Body Works, a local bus manufacturing business, and rented an apartment in Mitchell. He had trouble earning a sufficient income and was determined to attend college. Using the G. I. Bill for partial payment of his school tuition, Grissom enrolled at Purdue University in September 1. During his time in college, Betty returned to live with her parents and took a job at the Indiana Bell Telephone Company while he worked part time as a cook at a local restaurant. Grissom took summer classes to finish early and graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in Mechanical Engineering in February 1. Korean WareditGrissom re enlisted in the military after he graduated from Purdue, this time in the newly formed United States Air Force. He was accepted into the air cadet basic training program at Randolph Air Force Base in Universal City, Texas. Upon completion of the program, he was assigned to Williams Air Force Base in Mesa, Arizona. In March 1. Grissom received his pilot wings and commission as a second lieutenant. Betty remained in Indiana, and while he was away his first child, Scott, was born. After his birth they joined Grissom in Arizona. The family remained there only briefly and in December 1. Presque Isle, Maine, where Grissom was assigned to Presque Isle Air Force Base and became a member of the 7. Fighter Interceptor Squadron. USAFF 8. 6F, similar to the aircraft Grissom flew in Korea. With the ongoing Korean War, Grissoms squadron was dispatched to the war zone in February 1. There he flew as an F 8. Sabre replacement pilot and was reassigned to the 3. Fighter Squadron of the 4th Fighter Interceptor Wing stationed at Kimpo Air Base. He flew 1. 00 combat missions. On multiple occasions he broke up Korean air raids as their Mi. Gs would often flee at the first sign of superior American aircraft. On March 1. 1, 1. Grissom was promoted to first lieutenant and was cited for his superlative airmanship. Mana Khemia English Patch there. He was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross and the Air Medal with an oak leaf cluster. Grissom asked to remain in Korea to fly another 2. He was given the option of choosing which base he wished to be stationed at in the United States he requested Bryan AFB in Bryan, Texas. He served there as a flight instructor, and was joined by his wife and son. His second child was born there in 1. During a training exercise with a cadet, a trainee pilot caused a flap to break off the plane, sending it spinning out of control. Grissom climbed from the rear seat of the small craft to take over the controls and safely land the jet. In August 1. 95. 5, Grissom was reassigned to the U. S. Air Force Institute of Technology located in Dayton, Ohio. After completing the year long course he earned a bachelors degree in Aeromechanics in 1. In October 1. 95. USAF Test Pilot School at Edwards Air Force Base, California, and returned to Wright Patterson AFB in May 1. NASA careereditIn 1. Grissom received an official teletype message instructing him to report to an address in Washington, D. C. wearing civilian clothes.