Deke Slayton SIGNED 1961 NASA Letter Mercury 7 Astronaut w/ JSA COA Space ASTP

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Deke Slayton SIGNED 1961 NASA Letter Mercury 7 Astronaut w/ JSA COA Space ASTP:
$5999.99

For sale, a remarkable 1961 hand-written letter by one of the original Mercury 7 astronauts, Deke Slayton, complete with authentication from JSA! An incredible piece of early space race history, this official letter is a remarkable time capsule, bearing the official letterhead of Project Mercury. This two-page letter, hand-written on the front and back of a single page and dated March 2nd, 1961, gives an insightful look into the work and mindset of the early astronauts vying for flight status inside Langley Air Force Base.At this point in the space race, Alan Shepard had been selected as the first man in space, but less than six weeks after the writing of this letter, Yuri Gagarin would shock the world by making his successful manned flight before Shepard, on April 12th, 1961.
Slayton, identifying here as a United States Air Force Major, responds to an interested citizen's outreach. He discusses his disappointment he wasn't selected for the first ballistic flight and his hope to be the first astronaut in orbit, describing it as "our mission in life". He additionally speaks proudly of the effectiveness of the Atlas rocket and describes some of his duties when not in the capsule himself.
Slayton was scheduled to pilot the second US orbital mission, but was medically grounded in 1962 for over a decade by an irregular heart rhythm. While off flight rotation, he pioneered the astronaut office, managed flight assignments, and became director of flight crew operations. Slayton finally did fly in space in 1975, the last of the original Mercury astronauts to do so, as part of the historic Apollo-Soyuz Test Project. A pivotal member of NASA's success and a legend in space flight, Slayton continued his work for NASA until 1980, even working to develop the design of the upcoming Space Shuttle.
The letter reads:2 March, 1961
Dear Randy,Thank you for your sympathiesregarding the recent selection process. I wassomewhat discouraged momentarily but thisselection was for first ballistic flight andorbital flight is our mission in life sohaven't lost hope of making that one first.
Regarding my specific job in additionto being an astronaut; I attempt to keepan eye on all aspects of the Atlas booster.Atlas was designed as a ballistic missileand does quite well at this. We haveadapted it as a powerplant or booster fora space ship and naturally many changeswere necessary to meet this requirement.
Without getting into a multitude ofdetail, my job is to insure that Atlasis operating satisfactorily for manned spacemissions. This involves sitting in on(page break)numerous meetings, watching Atlaspreparations for launches & launches, andanalyzing flight test data for deficiencieswhich might affect us. That's about thesize of it. Naturally, my primary missionis to train and be prepared as an astronaut.
Am enclosing some publications onMercury and space flight in generalplus an autographed picture per yourrequest. If I can be of furtherassistance, please let me know.
Sincerely,Deke SlaytonMaj. USAF
Quite fine condition, showing some light signs of handling and age, with discreet pin holes in each corner. Includes fullJSA certification, as well as an archival sleeve and rigid top-loader to keep it looking great!
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