Flight 91 of the X-15 program, piloted by William J. 'Pete' Knight, made history by reaching an astonishing altitude of 107.96 kilometers (354,200 feet). The flight occurred from Edwards Air Force Base in California, a significant site for aeronautics testing. The X-15 rocket plane was part of a series of experimental aircraft designed to gather data on flight conditions at the edge of space. This particular flight took place during a time of rapid advancements in aeronautics and space exploration amidst the Cold War tensions, where the United States and the Soviet Union were fiercely competing to achieve key milestones in space.The flight commenced with Knight, who was one of seven pilots in the test program, climbing to a maximum altitude that set a record for the program. The instrumentation onboard collected valuable data concerning the performance of the vehicle at high altitudes, including the effects of atmospheric reentry. The experiences gained from the X-15 program would later inform the design and operational strategies of spacecraft like the Mercury, Gemini, and Apollo programs.This achievement was not only about reaching a new altitude record but also contributed significantly to the understanding of hypersonic flight, reentry dynamics, and how to protect pilots from the extreme heat generated during descent from such altitudes. The insights gained helped shape the future of manned space travel and laid important groundwork for later missions into low Earth orbit and beyond.