Breathtaking Atlantic sunrise bathes giant Gemini gantry in red-orange glow. Crew worked around the clock preparing for successful GT-3 launch, which lifted two American astronauts – Virgil Grissom and John Young – into orbit.
Behind the successful flight of two men in space were the endeavors of hundreds of contractors guided by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration. Under contract to McDonnell Aircraft Corporation, builder of the Gemini spacecraft for NASA, Collins provided the complete voice communication system as well as the radio link for command control.
Before the day pictured above had ended, Grissom and Young had completed four orbital flights, gathered extensive amounts of new flight data, including man’s first experience with controlled spacecraft flight, and much new medical information.
It was a new dawn for America’s efforts in space.
—Collins Signal, Issue 56, Volume 13-1, 1965 – Page 16-17