To auction, buy, consign or sell Space Flown In Flight Instructions or John Glenn’s In Flight Instructions, please contact [email protected] or call (310) 440-2982.

John Glenn’s In Flight Instructions

In July 2016, we at NateDSanders.com Auction House, were able to sell one of the most significant John Glenn items of space memorabilia auctioned — his original In Flight Instructions Used & Flown Aboard Mercury 6.  The piece was so significant that it even got media coverage including space memorabilia industry media coverage further cementing the authenticity.  Here is the description, picture and price realized:

John Glenn’s In Flight Instructions Used & Flown Aboard Mercury 6

One-of-kind piece of space history flown with John Glenn aboard the Mercury-Atlas 6 “Friendship 7” – the first manned orbit of the earth by an American astronaut. These in-flight photo instructions were used by Glenn aboard the 20 February 1962 mission and feature both a chronological flight plan with detailed astrological markers (“+7′ CASSIOPIA/COUNT STARTS” and “+23′ ORION & MOON/UV PHOTOS COUNT STARS”), as well as fixed geographical landmarks (“LAKE VICTORIA/KENYA NAIROBI” AND “CHRISTMAS ISLANDS”). All data on the instructions was personally used by Glenn to confirm the capsule’s flight path during its 4 hour and 55 minute mission, instructing Glenn at which point to take photos in flight. Instructions also include an in-flight check list that covers such tasks as “Chng Film-Color Filter Out” and “STOW & R. SEQ CHK CET”. The document was attached to a bobbin at each end, forming a scroll that Glenn was able to move back and forth with his thumb during the mission. The long and narrow document measures 4.75″ x 42.5″, its ends trimmed to fit into the bobbin slits. The in-flight instructions were given by Glenn to Frogman Richard “Dick” Dunham of UDT-21 (Underwater Demolition Team) as a thank you memento for his work with Mercury 6; a precursor to Navy Seals, the UDT both trained astronauts for egress from the space capsule into the ocean and retrieved the astronauts after splashdown. The flight plan was then given to U.S. Navy veteran Justin C. Pollard by Dunham, who became a mentor during Pollard’s time in the Navy Bud/S School, Class 240. The document’s historical significance was confirmed by the John Glenn Archives at Ohio State University Libraries. Light creasing and wear, otherwise near fine. Additional provenance includes: (1) LOA from Justin Pollard; (2) 1959 photo of Dunham and Glenn together (Dunham is the blond gentleman, 4th from left in back row) and (3) screen-capture photo of the Mercury 6 cockpit, scroll visible in center of photo, in front of John Glenn.  Sold for $66,993.

John Glenn’s In-Flight Instructions Used & Flown Aboard Mercury 6

To auction, buy, consign or sell Space Flown In Flight Instructions, please contact [email protected] or call (310) 440-2982.

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