I am writing a PhD dissertation at MIT on the history of flight simulation covering the period from World War II through the Apollo missions to the moon. David Mindell is my primary faculty advisor. You may be familiar with his books, Between Human and Machine and Digital Apollo.

I also teach the Engineering Apollo course at MIT with David Mindell and Larry Young, who is also on my dissertation committee. This course examines the detailed technical and historical exploration of the Apollo project as an example of a complex engineering system, with emphasis on how the systems worked, the technical and social processes that produced them, the mission operations, and Apollo’s historical significance.

I recently read about the Oral Histories From The Pioneers of America’s Space Program that you conducted in conjunction with the Houston Chapter of the AIAA and Honeywell Corporation. I would be very interested in obtaining a copy of the oral histories you conducted.

In particular, I understand your collaborator was Kenneth J. Cox who worked at the Johnson Space Center for most of his career. I am hoping that he might be one of the individuals you interviewed, since I am very interested in his role in the development of the Apollo Lunar Module digital autopilot.

Thanks very much for your help. I look forward to hearing from you.

Best wishes,

John Tylko