There is no typical path which leads a person to become an astronaut. For some, aerial combat or test piloting in one of the armed forces leads to a career in space flight. Some develop a curiosity and love of flying during adolescence. Others recall a childhood filled with memories of making airplanes from paper or balsa wood and flying with nothing more than a cardboard box for a cockpit and imagination for fuel. Others, however, were “actually born into flying.” Edward White fell into this category. For Ed White, flying was not merely a hobby, fascination or job. Flying was his birthright.