Meet the first and only Air Force pilot to shoot down a satellite
David Roza, Task & Purpose
The ASAT (anti-satellite) missile launch on September 13, 1985. US Air Force/Paul Reynolds
In September 1985, then-Maj. Doug Pearson Jr. became the first and only Air Force pilot to shoot down a satellite.
Pearson's successful test of the ASM-135 was a complex feat, one that the Air Force hasn't attempted since.
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On September 13, 1985, an Air Force pilot pushed his F-15A into a steep climb at near-supersonic speeds as he prepared to launch into history. The pilot had prepared many months for what he was about to do: fire a heat-seeking missile toward a satellite the size of a 1969 Volkswagen as it hurtled through orbit at 5 miles a second. Basically, he was about to hit a bullet with another bullet, which would require absolutely perfect timing. But the pilot was ready for it.
https://www.businessinsider.com/first-and-only-air-force-pilot-to-shoot-down-satellite-2020-7
