Apollo and America's Moon Landing Program : Apollo 11 Countdown and Flight Plan

For the first time, this WSN Special Report reproduces two of the most important official NASA operational documents from the Apollo 11 lunar landing mission: the KSC Apollo / Saturn V Space Vehicle Countdown - dated July 3, 1969, and the Final Apollo 11 Flight Plan (AS-506/CSM-107/LM-5) - dated July 1, 1969 prepared by the Flight Planning Branch, Flight Crew Support Division, Manned Spacecraft Center.

Countdown Document Contents: Description, Hazardous Area Control, Intercommunications, Operating Stations, OTV Camera Locations, List of Abbreviations, Hold Points, Precount Procedures, Final Operational Procedures, Pre-cryogenic Loading Checklists, Contingency Crew Pad Access and Evacuation Procedures, Typical Flight Event Sequence for 72 degree mission, map of blast danger area at Saturn V launch pad, bar event charts of Spacecraft Launch Closeout Plan, Radio Frequency Matrix, Saturn V Propellant Loading, Saturn V Space Vehicle Countdown.

Flight Plan Document Contents: Launch through entry - Minute-by-minute illustrated timelines with MCC-H calls, crew procedures, notes, uplinks, communication station coverage, presleep checklists. Supplemental information: Mission Description, Detailed Objective Activities, Lunar Surface Navigation, EVA preparation and egress, surface sample collection, external LM observations and photography, experiment deployment, post-EVA operations, contamination prevention, crew positions during mission, PGA configuration, status report information, communications, CSM electrical power system and water management, environmental control system and cabin pressurization, guidance and navigation, landmark tracking, LM notes, passive thermal control, RCS operation and interface constraints, rendezvous, lunar landing site data, symbol nomenclature, acronyms, consumables analysis - SM RCS propellant, SPS, LM RCS propellant, LM descent propulsion system, LM ascent propulsion system, cryogenic summary, LM ECS budget, CM ECS budget, CSM and LM burn schedule, LM powered descent/high gate to TD chart, lunar orbit rest period attitude, typical landmark tracking profile drawing, mission summary flight plan chart, ascent crew calls ("clear of tower", etc.)

Please keep in mind that since this is an exact reproduction of an original historic document, it contains a few minor flaws and some pages with small text. In particular, the countdown document text was printed using a low-resolution computer impact printer of the kind popular in the late 1960s, which results in some poorly-formed characters. (It may not be pretty, but it is authentic!) The flight plan document is clear and sharp. Anyone interested in the history of Apollo will enjoy this unique document!