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Apollo 1 Fire
Apollo 1
Apollo 1, initially designated AS-204, was the first crewed mission of the Apollo program, the American undertaking to land the first man on the Moon. It was planned to launch on February 21, 1967, as the first low Earth orbital test of the Apollo command and service module. The mission never flew; a cabin fire during a launch rehearsal test at Cape Kennedy Air Force Station Launch Complex 34 on January 27 killed all three crew members—Command Pilot Gus Grissom {left}, Senior Pilot Ed White center}, and Pilot Roger B. Chaffee {right}—and destroyed the command module (CM). The name Apollo 1, chosen by the crew, was made official by NASA in their honor after the fire.
Left to Right: Grissom-White-Chaffee-NASA
"How do you expect to get us to
the Moon if you people can't even hook us up with a ground station?" Virgil Grissom. January 27, 1967
Images of Apollo 1 {204}
Apollo 1 Crew Left to Right:
White-Grissom-Chaffee
Apollo I astronauts (left to right)
Roger Chaffee, Ed White and Gus Grissom, Fla.
Ralph Morse: LIFE Picture Collection/Shutterstock
Crew members crossing the crew access arm to the capsule.
Photo Courtesy: NASA
The Apollo CM was hoisted to the top of the gantry at launch complex 34 at the Kennedy Space Center
in preparation for testing on
January 6, 1967. (NASA/Ed Hengeveld)
Apollo 1 crew preparing to enter
the Apollo 1 spacecraft during a
practice session. All 3 lost their lives on
January 27, 1967 during a "plugs-out" test.
Photo Courtesy: NASA
Left to Right: Chaffee-White-Grissom
On January 27, 1967, one of the inside cameras was inoperative due to a damaged bracket.
Photo Courtesy: NASA
Block 1 Hatch
Charred Spacesuits of Apollo 1
Photo Courtesy: NASA
Cape Canaveral Launch Pad 34
Let it be known to planet earth that aerospace historian, Rick Boos of Dayton/Celina, Ohio had
this plaque made and was placed by him on the
leg of the launch pad that first led
humanity to the stars.