Saturn V Flight Manual

[gary]

As we approach the 50th anniversary of the flight of Apollo 11, it can be
instructive and illuminating to browse some of the historical documents
of the time.

Like all aircraft, the Saturn V came with its own flight manual for the crew.
Essentially an "Owner's Manual" for a rocket.

This 254 page document was prepared for Flight SA-203, which was
the Apollo 8 mission.

As its forward describes :-



It is a document of great beauty and by briefly describing each of the
sub-systems with just enough information to boggle the mind, in
doing that it betrays the immense amount of painstaking work, skill
and dedication that went into designing, building, testing and
documenting each of those components.

400,000 people worked on the Apollo project after all, so it is impossible
for any one human mind to understand in complete detail the minutiae
of all its technology and operations.

Nevertheless, put yourself in the shoes of an Apollo astronaut when
browsing this document, as it is one of many thousands you would
have needed to absorb as part of your training.

Saturn V Flight Manual - 254 pages - scanned PDF :-
http://users.monash.edu.au/~ralphk/saturn-5-rocket-flight-manual-19750063889_1975063889.pdf

[AndyG]

Thankyou Gary, another excellent post to lose an afternoon to (and still not understand).

I'm guessing the fact that this manual was revised 30 days before launch was testiment to the constant development and unsettled nature of the beast. Did they re-issue the manual with the completion of each new launcher? Was each Apollo mission delivered on the same design, or did they evolve as the program went on?

[gary]

Hi Andy,

Each mission had its own version of the Saturn V Flight Manual.

When you browse some of the others, the overall format is essentially
identical, but the devil would no doubt be in the detail.

One example might be if you examine the PDF on page 1-12, starting in
the lower left column under the heading "POGO".



The document then goes onto describe "Acceptability Criteria" and
"Solutions Considered" for the "Pogo" phenomena along with "Analysis
and Testing".

"Pogo" is a bit like water hammer in your household plumbing.
It can be disconcerting in a house or apartment when it shakes everything
so one can only imagine how disconcerting it would be when one
is sitting atop a Saturn V. :)

I recollect at the time "Pogo" was often reported by astronauts and flight
controllers and it was an ongoing issue all the way through to
Apollo 17. They kept attempting to resolve it on each mission.

For example on the first stage they fitted surge absorbers.

But the Apollo 10 second-stage shutdown early because of pogo and
it caused an early shutdown on Apollo 13 as well.

Enjoy the read! Checkout pages 4-8 and 4-9 on the sequence of starting
the first stage F1 engines. Each of these babies consumed a mix of RP1
(kerosene similar to jet fuel) and LOX fuel at a rate of 3 metric
tonnes a second. And there were five engines!

Below. Snapshot I took three years ago of the F1 engines on the Saturn
V on display at the Space Flight Center in Houston. Even when you are prepared
as to how big they are, you still aren't prepared when you walk up to them.
I like the fact that despite all the obvious labour that went into building them,
they only had to work for 2 and a half minutes before being discarded.

[JeniSkunk]

Thank you very much for this, Gary
:)
This is a great read.

I missed the Kickstarter for the Apollo 11 Flight Plan Re-Issue (https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/apollo11/apollo-11-flight-plan-re-issue). I had too many other Kickstarters I was actively backing at that same time, to be able to also cover backing that one.

[gary]

Thanks Jen,

It would be wonderful to have a hard copy but if you don't already have it, you can find a PDF copy of the Apollo 11 Flight Plan here :-
https://www.hq.nasa.gov/alsj/a11/a11fltpln_final_reformat.pdf

Relish in the beauty of the graphic design of its timeline!

Note details such as the graphical representations of the view of Earth at 72:00 and the star sextant alignment field of view at the 79:52 point
on pages 158 & 166, respectively.

See also http://www.iceinspace.com.au/forum/showthread.php?t=163385
where our own steely-eyed missile man Dennis possibly spotted a typo. :thumbsup:

[Startrek]

I haven’t read the Apollo fight manuals as yet, only the Project Mercury flight manuals but intend to eventually get around to reading them
As a kid growing up in the 60’s I watched most of the Gemini and Apollo missions on my parents tiny black and white PYE TV. My Aunt married a US marine on leave in Sydney and moved to the US in the late 40’s and eventually worked for Rockwell in LA who was a major Apollo contractor. She always sent across to me Space / Apollo related gifts for my birthdays.
I was immersed in the space race and the ultimate achievement of the human race setting foot on another celestial body

After retiring last year my wife and I , as part of a Canada / US trip , visited the Kennedy Space Centre over 3 days. The excitement that the Apollo program gave me as a kid was put into reality 50 years later touring through the KSC.These days the whole complex sits dormant with the exception of Blue Origin and Space X facilities but I could only image what is was like during Apollo era

As yes everyone has to get a photo standing below a Saturn 5 ( this one would have been Apollo 18 or 19 ?? ) The most incredible machine humankind has ever created , absolutely enormous !!!

Thanks for posting the article and I will certainly get around to reading the Apollo flight manuals

Cheers

[JeniSkunk]

Thanks for that second PDF link Gary.
I'm definitely grabbing a copy of it.
:)

[multiweb]

Cool files Gary. I remember you posting the flight plans a while ago. Fantastic work and illustrations. A work of art. Just shows how technical the astronauts were. I recall an interview of Neil Armstrong always mentioning he was foremost a problem solver and an engineer. His job was to push the system to the limits and outline the inadequacies and errors that ensued. He always saw himself as an engineer first, he just happened to fly in the bolides he was "debugging". It's a whole new perspective when you put your life on the line because of the successive decisions you make in the very short time you have to make them.

[DarkArts]

Great post and thanks for the links. :thumbsup:

It probably says waaaay too much about me, but I enjoyed reading the Flight Manual ... :screwy:

[FlashDrive]

Fixed for you Martin.... ;)

[JeniSkunk]

That's actually the full size stage 1 replica built for static testing of the engines.
Marshall Space Flight Center History Office article Three Saturn Vs on Display Teach Lessons in Space History (https://history.msfc.nasa.gov/saturn_apollo/display.html)

[Peter Ward]

I've been lucky enough to have met and chatted with Alan Shepard for a couple of hours many moons ago (it was a long flight) my conclusion was these guys have walked on hallowed ground. To look up at the Moon and think: I've been there. (Verbatim quote: "Yea, I did the flight" )

Awesome stuff. Dare I say, "the right stuff" .:thumbsup::thumbsup::thumbsup:

[Startrek]

It would have been a privilege to meet “Smiling” Al Shepard a true space pioneer and American hero
We visited the launch site of his Mercury redstone MA5 mission last year at the KSC, the gantry obviously has been removed but the pad , flame guards, block house and firing room are still there including a replica Mercury redstone Rocket .The site looks more like a 50s / 60s missile launch facility rather than a space launch complex , very primitive to say the least which made his Mercury flight even more incredible when it came to technology , human safety and risk etc...
Here’s a couple of pics
Cheers

[Startrek]

Correction....it was Mercury redstone flight MA 3 not MA5 !!

[sil]

I backed the kickstarter, no regrets. Its pretty awesome having the binder to peruse over, then I am a bit of a bibliophile :)

[gary]

Thanks everyone for their comments, photos and anecdotes.

Peter, you were certainly lucky to have such an extended one-on-one with
Alan Shepard! Martin, love the picture of the Redstone launch console.

Some additional pictures taken at JSC, Houston attached.

1) Little Joe II rocket with Command Module analog and Launch Escape
system payload, with Redstone/Mercury in background.
Five unmanned Little Joe II launches took place to test and verify the
Launch Escape System and the Command Module parachutes.
Little Joe II launch video on YouTube :- https://youtu.be/5I9KhkKXYF8

2) Saturn V main stage F1 engine

3) Saturn V

4) Saturn V

5) Saturn V F1 engine cluster

6) Saturn V Second Stage J2 engine cluster

7) Saturn V Third Stage with J2 engine

8) Saturn V. Note charred Command Module.

[gary]

Pete Conrad's grimy EVA suit and lunar samples at JSC, Houston.

Pete Conrad was the third man to walk on the Moon.

When Pete Conrad and Alan Bean docked with the Command Module
and the hatch was opened, Command Module pilot "Dick" Gordon
saw how dusty and grimy the two moon walkers were and said,
"You guys ain’t gonna mess up my nice clean spacecraft", and slammed
the hatch.

Conrad and Bean stripped naked and stowed their gear in zip lock bags
and floated into the Command Module wearing nothing but their headsets.

[alan meehan]

Some really good reading in all that,a professor friend of mine who was at the launch of Apollo 11 gave me a book that was given to the press although it is 10th anniversary edition it makes for some interesting reading