Path: utzoo!attcan!uunet!ginosko!gem.mps.ohio-state.edu!uwm.edu!mailrus!sharkey!cfctech!fmeed1!ccd700!mibte!gamma!towernet!pyuxp!pyuxe!nvuxr!deej From: deej@nvuxr.UUCP (David Lewis) Newsgroups: sci.space.shuttle Subject: Tanks for the memories (was Re: Shuttle ... -a question-) Message-ID: <1313@nvuxr.UUCP> Date: 20 Sep 89 16:48:35 GMT References: <31816@ames.arc.nasa.gov> <21679@sequent.UUCP> Organization: Bellcore, Livingston, NJ Lines: 25 In article <21679@sequent.UUCP>, cliffw@sequent.UUCP (Cliff White) writes: > In article <31816@ames.arc.nasa.gov> yee@trident.arc.nasa.gov (Peter E. Yee) writes: > > Later > > today the crew members will practice driving in the M113 tracked > > vehicles at the Shuttle Landing Facility. Commander Don Williams > Please pardon a (possibly) stupid question-but why is the crew practicing > tank driving? How does this relate to space work? (Nitpicking -- the M113 is an Armored Personnel Carrier, not a tank...) Anyway. The M113 is part of the emergency crew escape system at KSC. In the event of a pad emergency where the crew needs to get out of the shuttle (while still on the ground, that is) and away from the pad in a hurry, they ride a basket down a cable to the ground, bail out of that, pile into the M113, and drive like hell away from the pad. I guess if you're going to be in the vicinity of a large amount of exploding rocket fuel, an armored personnel carrier is a decent kind of thing to be in... although personally I might go for exit speed and have three or four Ferarri Testarossas there myself... -- David G Lewis ...!bellcore!nvuxr!deej "If this is paradise, I wish I had a lawnmower."