Launch Complex 34 – Apollo 1 Tragedy - Cape Canaveral Air Force Station - Space Flight Memorials and Exhibits on Waymarking.com

This memorial honors the courage and tragic end of the first Apollo Space Crew. On January 27, 1967 at 5:31 p.m. CST (6:31 local time) during a routine simulated launch test conducted here at Launch Complex 34 the crew of Apollo 1 (AS-204) perished in their command module in an oxygen fire.

The Crew Who Were Lost:
Lieutenant Colonel, Virgil I. Grissom USAF.
Lieutenant Colonel, Edward H. White II USAF.
Lieutenant Commander, Roger B. Chaffee US Navy.

The official location of the fire was on this launch pad, designated Pad 34-A (7). The launch vehicle involved was a Saturn -1B AS-204 (4) rocket.

A flash fire occurred in command module 012 during a launch pad test of the Apollo/Saturn space vehicle being prepared for the first piloted flight, the AS-204 mission. Three astronauts, Lt. Col. Virgil I. Grissom, a veteran of Mercury and Gemini missions; Lt. Col. Edward H. White, the astronaut who had performed the first United States extravehicular activity during the Gemini program; and Roger B. Chaffee, an astronaut preparing for his first space flight, died in this tragic accident. The Apollo 204 accident was a tragic event in the nation's space program.

After the tragic fire NASA initiated a full investigation led by Dr. Floyd L. Thompson. The results of the investigation drove specific recommendations leading to major design and engineering modifications, and revisions to test planning, test discipline, manufacturing processes and procedures, and quality control. With these changes, the overall safety of the command and service module and the lunar module was increased substantially. The AS-204 mission was redesignated Apollo I in honor of the crew.

To access this location you must purchase an admission ticket to the Kennedy Space Center and then purchase a guided tour ticket for the “Then and Now Tour” Total adult ticket cost is $80.21 as of October 2012.

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Hours: 9 A.M. to 5:00 P.M. Daily. Fee (if no fee, enter 'none'): $81.25 How Long a Hike: 100 yards from bus stop Amount of time an average person would spend here: Entire day Accessible?: yes Location is wheelchair accessible?: Yes

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Recent Visits/Logs:

Date Logged Log User Rating   01/06/2012 PersonsMD visited it