we missed by *this* much....
from the book The Mercury 13: The Untold Story of Thirteen American Women and the Dream of Space Flight
'[Congressman James] Fulton asked one final question of John Glenn: Would you support a program to train women astronauts? "I wouldn't oppose it," Glenn replied, but then he added, "I see no requirement for it." Glenn argued that NASA already had many qualified men and had spent a lot of money training them. "Now, to spend many millions of dollars to additionally qualify other people, whom we don't particularly need, regardless of sex, creed, or color, doesn't seem right, when we already have these qualified people.'
That was in a Subcommittee meeting on July 17th. By that time, the Mercury 13 had been undergoing extensive testing on US Naval facilities. And almost from the start of the Space Race, there had been the rumor that the USSR was working on putting a woman into orbit.
And every one of the Mercury 13 women had piloting experience - not jets (no military service), but almost every other type of airplane at the time.
---
and this is irony, right?: in the wake of Cosmonaut Valentina Tereshkova's time in space:
'["]Now we've lost our only chance to have a first in space ... I really mean it when I wish her well," Cobb admitted. "I'm glad a woman made it. But I'm sorry she's not an American." John Glenn spoke out as well and maintained his belief that American men made better astronauts than American women would. The qualifications we're looking for are best met by men, he said.'
'[Congressman James] Fulton asked one final question of John Glenn: Would you support a program to train women astronauts? "I wouldn't oppose it," Glenn replied, but then he added, "I see no requirement for it." Glenn argued that NASA already had many qualified men and had spent a lot of money training them. "Now, to spend many millions of dollars to additionally qualify other people, whom we don't particularly need, regardless of sex, creed, or color, doesn't seem right, when we already have these qualified people.'
That was in a Subcommittee meeting on July 17th. By that time, the Mercury 13 had been undergoing extensive testing on US Naval facilities. And almost from the start of the Space Race, there had been the rumor that the USSR was working on putting a woman into orbit.
And every one of the Mercury 13 women had piloting experience - not jets (no military service), but almost every other type of airplane at the time.
---
and this is irony, right?: in the wake of Cosmonaut Valentina Tereshkova's time in space:
'["]Now we've lost our only chance to have a first in space ... I really mean it when I wish her well," Cobb admitted. "I'm glad a woman made it. But I'm sorry she's not an American." John Glenn spoke out as well and maintained his belief that American men made better astronauts than American women would. The qualifications we're looking for are best met by men, he said.'