Portal:Indiana/Selected biography/15

Virgil Ivan "Gus" Grissom (April 3, 1926 – January 27, 1967) was a United States Air Force pilot and the second American astronaut to fly in space. He was killed during a training exercise for the Apollo One mission on January 27, 1967, at Launch Complex 34 at Cape Kennedy. A native of Mitchell, Indiana, Grissom earned a B.S. from Purdue University in 1950 and joined the United States Air Force. Receiving his wings in March 1951, during the Korean War he flew 100 combat missions in F-86s with the 334th Fighter Interceptor Squadron. Grissom rose to the rank of Lieutenant Colonel. In 1959, after physical and psychological tests, Grissom was chosen as one of the seven Project Mercury astronauts.