Path: utzoo!utgpu!watmath!clyde!att!rutgers!cs.utexas.edu!ut-emx!bonin
From: bonin@ut-emx.UUCP (Marc Bonin)
Newsgroups: sci.space.shuttle
Subject: Re: space news from Sept 12 AW&ST
Summary: Apollow 13 Towing Charges
Keywords: Apollo 204, Apollo 13.
Message-ID: <8442@ut-emx.UUCP>
Date: 3 Dec 88 03:23:20 GMT
References: <23618@amdcad.AMD.COM> <1110@esunix.UUCP> <5010@hplabsb.HP.COM> <1194@inria.UUCP>
Organization: The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, Texas
Lines: 37

In article <1194@inria.UUCP>, vassili@averell.inria.fr (Vassilis Prevelakis) writes:
> In article <5010@hplabsb.HP.COM> dsmith@hplabsb.UUCP (David Smith) writes:
> >What happened to Beech as a result of Apollo 13?
> Beech? what's Beech.  I only (vaguely) remember reading in a book about
> Apollo 13 that the CM/SM contractor (Rockwell?) was charged towing charges??
> by the manufactures of the LM (I did READ it!).
> 
> >Did Rockwell (still North American at
> >the time?) suffer from Apollo 204?
> What's Apollo 204?
> 

  You can read this  story in the book 'Chariots For Apollo' which tells the
story of the development of the lunar module from the point of view of several
engineers and technicians at Grumman (the LM manufacturer).  It's fascinating
reading and contains a detailed account of Apollo 13,  and what the Grumman 
people considered the LM's finest hour , next to the Apollo 11 touchdown.
   After an oxygen tank explosion caused the CM/SM to lose power and propulsion
the 3 man crew used the propulsion and life support systems onboard the LM
Aquarius to stay alive and put their vessel onto an earth-return trajectoy
Many at Grumman stayed up for several days working out solutions to the problemsthat came up.  When the crisis was over, someone who was still awake enought to
think a little wrote up a bill charging North-American Rockwell (CM/SM 
contractor for a 250,000 mile towing job.


Apollo 204 was the manufacturer's designation for the ill fated craft that
was going to be used as the Apollo 1 flight vehicle.  On January 27 , 1967
during a launch rehearsal a fire broke out and took the lives of the crew.
The CM was subsequently redesigned and the interior outfitted with more
fire retardant materials and a quick opening hatch was also added.


                Marc Bonin

University of Texas
Aerospace Engineering (MS in 1990 or bust !!)
:wq