My "office" when I went disabled....

[TerryC]

I was a cop most of my adult life. The one spot I really miss is working at the Kennedy Space Center. Here is a pic of one of the shuttles on pad 39A. If I were working the shuttle, I would have been UP CLOSE AND PERSONAL. No, Kilroy was NOT there.... too many cameras! Do some digging and you could find out what mission was about to launch. I will add more to this thread in the following days... things most people will not know about the shuttle. (click the thumbnail 3 times for a better view) Enjoy! TTC

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[Tn Gizmo]

The last shuttle...our paths may have crossed I delivered parts of the "Challenger" when it was being built and a few other loads after it was completed.

[River Rat]

I was @ a survivors camp @ Homestead AFB, the camp itself was close to the launch pads. We had the opportunity to see the Challenger go up that Jul and in Jan was when it exploded.

[TerryC]

Sad, very very sad. Did you know most of the astronauts lived through the explosion? They know this because each one wears an emergency air supply. Most air supllies were found to be turned on when the bodies were recovered out of the sea. That means they lived through the explosion to turn them on. I was working the day the Colombia broke up on its re-entry over Texas. There was an Isreali astronaut on board so we were in Super Alert mode. When we didn't hear the expected sonic booms, we all thought, "Those guys pulled a fast one and secretly landed in CA. Then the long silence was broken by a radio message, "We lost radio contact...." We were all in complete and utter DENIAL. Side note... The Colombia was the first Shuttle to fly (Enterprise was first built but never flew) and the only shuttle to have a bulbous tail fin. (I have a pic of me up next to it and will try to conjure it up for you all). It was thought that it was more aerodynamic. They then thought not so no more bulbs. That is how you can tell the pic of the shuttle you were looking at was the Colombia. The bulb on the tail. TTC

[TerryC]

Everyone that went up in the shuttle, including Christa McCaullauf, had to learn how to operate the M113 personel carrier, in case they are the only one able to move the vehicle away from the pad in the event of an explosion on the pad. The M113 is positioned at the far left of the above pic just before launch, near the large, square, "sand box". More on what they will do with it another day. TTC

[TerryC]

I worked the ACQ (astronaut crew quarters) one day. If readers didn't figure it out yet, I was one of those guys running around the place carrying sidearms and sub-guns, guarding KSC and CCAFB. I went up to the crew floor and asked for and later got an autographed astronaut pic, one addressed to Andrew and one handwritten to Derek, ... nephews when I was married. I was THE MAN! (one of the perks) TTC

[TerryC]

The Colombia tail (the only shuttle that had a bulb on the tail), cargo bay (the plastic drapes help maintain positive pressure, keeping bad air out), windows, and wheel (they cost 35,000 apiece). TTC

[SoreKneesDayton]

Great pics. Must have been an exciting job.

[TerryC]

VERY exciting job. Best benny was walking around with a sub-machine gun.... looking BAD. Well, I can't get fired so I will tell a little story. I met SIR Richard Branson when he came onto the place. He was helping his friend (damn, what's his name?) fly around the world without re-fueling. The plane needed the 3 mile landing strip for the shuttle. He came in a small visitor bus with one "assistant" (defined, body guard). I walked onto the bus carrying the MP5 sub-gun. I asked him for his autograph. He replied, "Sure. Who am I to deny a man with a machine gun?" Cool guy.... in jeans and t-shirt. (Tnx RGINN) TTC

[TerryC]

On the left of the pic is what looks like a large sandbox. In the event of trouble on the pad, the astronauts were to exit the shuttle on level 95. They then were to get into these metal and webbing baskets, pull a lever, and SWOOSH! Down to the sandbox. They get out and enter a bunker where they hooked up to airsupplies. If they have time, they get into an M113 parked there. They drive through a crashout gate at the very left side of pad. They drive west (left) down the road that you see exiting the pic to be picked up by a helicopter that would be sent to pick them up about 2 and 1/2 miles from the pad. TTC

[MinerGirl]

TerryC...Thanks for posting this. Was Very sad times indeed! I have several friends who work at the "Cape", Nasa...Possibly we have run into each other at some point in time... When I was in college at F.I.T. I was given clearance to see the shuttle and walk all around it...watched the first "Tiles" be affixed etc...Such a thrill...was 1978? or so....I think everyone remembers where they were when the shuttle exploded. I heard that at the memorial, along the inter-coastal waterway, that they threw 7 wreaths in the river and that 7 Dolphins came up and carried them away....So sad...want to post this song...a remix, but a favorite...Again...Thanks for your insights...very appreciated...



MinerGirl

[tngirl]

Terry, I really enjoyed the pictures and stories. Thanks for sharing them.

[dustytrails123]

I knew there was a reason terryC knows how to find all the old coins and gold....it has to be nasa doing the researching

[TerryC]

Tnx, Miner, Tn, and Dusty. Can't answer that, Dusty. That's knowledge gained under a SECRET CLEARANCE! Ha ha! TTC