I hate how they always show the retraction of the Q-ball cover form the top of the spacecraft at the very moment you'd much rather see the engnes starting! They did that on several of them in the 1970-1972 time frame...it's puzzling.
@altfactor I also think John Chancellor's taped commentary, in addition to being shown at the start of this clip, probably first aired the preceding evening, probably on a short night-before-the-launch special, which the networks routinely did during the Apollo era.
I think I know why Launch Control had an announcement right at 12 Noon Eastern time: If my memory serves me correct, not only did NBC start it's live launch-day coverage at that time, but so did ABC and CBS. NASA may have wanted to offer a launch control announcement at the moment the networks went on the air so that viewers could get an "official" countdown update before John Chancellor, Walter Cronkite, and Jules Bergman came on the air.
I hate how they always show the retraction of the Q-ball cover form the top of the spacecraft at the very moment you'd much rather see the engnes starting! They did that on several of them in the 1970-1972 time frame...it's puzzling.
RJY4356 6 months ago
Just can't thank you enough for posting all this great historic coverage!!
kenoz71 6 months ago
PAOs are Chuck Hollinshead at Cape Kennedy and John McLeaish in Houston, Capcom is Gordon Fullerton.
ceredigio 7 months ago
@altfactor I also think John Chancellor's taped commentary, in addition to being shown at the start of this clip, probably first aired the preceding evening, probably on a short night-before-the-launch special, which the networks routinely did during the Apollo era.
altfactor 7 months ago
I think I know why Launch Control had an announcement right at 12 Noon Eastern time: If my memory serves me correct, not only did NBC start it's live launch-day coverage at that time, but so did ABC and CBS. NASA may have wanted to offer a launch control announcement at the moment the networks went on the air so that viewers could get an "official" countdown update before John Chancellor, Walter Cronkite, and Jules Bergman came on the air.
altfactor 7 months ago