
This episode was recorded a few years ago—but the insight is timeless.
Join us on Wonder Women of Aviation as we step inside NASA’s legendary Super Guppy with Raymond, instructor pilot for the Johnson Space Center. From transporting spacecraft to supporting billion-dollar missions, this oversized aircraft is anything but outdated.
Raymond walks us through:
The Super Guppy’s origins in the 1960s Saturn V era
Why this aircraft still supports today’s Artemis missions
The quirks of flying a plane with no autopilot and 1940s-era controls
Wild stats: 25 ft cargo diameters, 700–800 gallons/hour fuel burn, and unique flight dynamics
What it’s like to sign for a $2 billion spacecraft (yes, really)
Plus, the history of the “Pregnant Guppy,” vertical center-of-gravity calculations, and what it takes to safely move rockets, jets, and more.
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