LIBERTY BELL 7
Men on a mission
Spacecraft engineers converge in Mitchell, IN
BY KRYSTAL SHETLER kshetler@tmnews.com
Editor’s note: As a part of the celebration for the 50th anniversary of Virgil I. “Gus” Grissom’s historic Liberty Bell 7 launch on July 21, 1961,several former McDonnell Aircraft personnel, who worked on the first space projects, were in Mitchell as panelists during the Launch Breakfast, as well as to enjoy other activities surrounding the celebration. Times-Mail staffer Krystal Shetler had the opportunity to sit down with each of them on Wednesday night, and here’s what they had to say.
"At the time, it was a job like no other. It was a job no one had ever done before. It took trial, error and vision. But in the end, the job of sending a man into space was a mission accomplished."
The men worked for McDonnell Aircraft Corp. of St. Louis, Mo. They were electricians, engineers and technicians. For most, it was their first job after serving in the military and attending college. For all, it was a job they’d never forget.
support engineer for McDonnell Aircraft, signs an
autograph before the Liberty Bell 7 50th Anniversary
Celebration Launch Breakfast Thursday at Spring Mill Inn. (Times-Mail / PETE SCHREINER)
Bell 7 Spacecraft
Aircraft Corp. (MAC)
Dean Purdy
An electrical engineer, Purdy worked on Mach 2 fighter jets, three missile programs and eight space programs, including five manned space programs. “I finished it out, the space program,” Purdy said. “We would design, build and test them in St. Louis, then it went to the Cape (Canaveral) for more testing.”During his career, Purdy met the original seven astronauts — Alan Shepard Jr., Virgil I. “Gus” Grissom, John Glenn Jr., Scott Carpenter, Wally Schirra, Jr., Leroy Gordon Cooper, Jr. and Donald “Deke” Slayton — in several meetings when the astronauts would travel to St. Louis. “When the spacecraft would lift off, it was an absolutely fabulous feeling,” Purdy said. “It was a great feeling to see it in the news. Remember, we were in a Cold War with Russia and we were in the middle of the ‘race to space’ against Russia.”
Earl Robb
A structural and mechanical design engineer, Robb worked on the Mercury, Gemini and SkyLab programs, as well as the design of fighter and commercial airplane projects. “I started working for McDonnell right out of college,” Robb said. “I worked first on the fighter and commercial aircraft designs, until the Mercury program kicked off in 1959. Then, I worked on structural mechanisms, such as the heat shields, hatches and other modules. “I can tell you that Mr. Mac (McDonnell) had a lot of foresight for his time. We were working on the two-man capsule (later became Gemini) before NASA was ready for it and before there was a contract for it. I was fortunate to be in the front end of that program, and I loved that I had the opportunity to work on it. “It was just absolutely amazing, and I enjoyed every day of work. I always felt so lucky to work with such capable people.”
Bob Schepp
Schepp served as an electrical engineer for McDonnell with a concentration on the autopilot systems. Grissom was assigned to the autopilot division, so Schepp worked very closely with the Mitchell native. “Gus was very special to our small group of engineers,” Schepp said. As a member of the launch team at Cape Canaveral, Schepp remembers how the launches would make him nervous. “I used to stand behind a telephone pole, I didn’t want to look,” he said. After working for more than 42 years, Schepp now serves as a substitute teacher. “I was very proud to have been part of the pioneering effort to put humans into space, but I am equally proud to be doing my bit to encourage and teach young people about engineering and science when I encounter them in their math and science classes.”
Norman Beckel
If the astronauts weren’t able to communicate with the control room, then Beckel’s job wasn’t complete. An electronics engineer, Beckel was charged with testing the communications system. And Beckel was at Cape Canaveral for Grissom’s Liberty Bell 7 flight. “We made sure transmission could happen,” Beckel said. He admits the space program was a stressful job for a young engineer. During launches, he would hold his breath when he’d get to the point in the lift-off where there was no turning back. “Before John Glenn went into space, no other American had gone before,” Beckel said. “We saw these missiles blowing up one right after another, and we knew we had to get it right. That was the biggest stress of the situation. Most of us were very young, only being in the industry for a couple of years, and here we were responsible for putting the first man into space. “But I can honestly tell you that had they cut our pay off, we all would’ve still done it. It was that important to us, and we loved it that much. Most of the things we were doing had not been done before, so it was pretty exciting.”
George Baldwin
Baldwin served as a manufacturing foreman, overseeing the pad crew. He spent his days in Cape Canaveral getting the pad ready for the Mercury launch. He was the guy who placed Grissom in the Liberty Bell 7 and closed the hatch. “By the time the smoke cleared off the pad, we secured the pad and got it all ready, the flight was over,” Baldwin said. “In the beginning, they really didn’t last that long.” Baldwin talks about America’s early space program with spirited passion. “My experience with it was wonderful because of the fact that the camaraderie and willingness of the workers and engineers because everyone had one goal in mind,” Baldwin said. “That was the absolute best time I had working at McDonnell. It was a time when we had Sputnik going over top of our heads, and a president setting the goal of going to the moon within the decade. It was an absolutely exciting time.”
Raymond Tucker
Tucker was an electrical ground support engineer for McDonnell. In 1960, he moved to Cape Canaveral to set up a complex cabling system for the Mercury launch, which included all the electric cables from the blockhouse to the Mercury spacecrafts. “It was my job to make sure it worked perfectly,” Tucker said. “Nothing can explain the feeling of working in the early days of the space program. There was so much cooperation on the part of employees, and it didn’t matter if you were involved in the main design or if you were the lowest employee there.” Tucker watched every Mercury and Gemini launch during his career with McDonnell. “It was certainly quite a job,” Tucker said. “I’m proud to have been a part of it.”
Darrel Boren
An employee of McDonnell, Boren worked as an electronics and instrument technician. It was his job on the launch crew to execute the final spacecraft instrument check on many of the Mercury and Gemini flights. He was the last person inside the Liberty Bell 7 just prior to Grissom being placed in the capsule for his historic flight. “It was a fun time,” Boren said. Boren’s name is on a dollar bill that Grissom took on that flight. It was recovered, along with the spacecraft, in 1999. And during Thursday’s Launch Breakfast, Boren was among those presented with a copy of that dollar bill in a frame. “It was interesting to be a part of it. That’s for sure,” Boren said.
The Astronauts' Nurse
Rose Church
Among the male engineers, electricians and technicians sits a rose — Rose Church that is. Church was an aerospace nurse for McDonnell Aircraft Corp. during the 1950s and 1960s. And she is in Mitchell to celebrate the legacy of Virgil I. “Gus” Grissom on the 50th anniversary of his famous Liberty Bell 7 flight. Church’s career at McDonnell began in 1951 when she answered a “help wanted” ad for an industrial nurse and got the job. “I was the nurse for the first three generations of astronauts,” Church said. She remembers Grissom quite well and even said she used to question why he walked the way he did. “I used to always tease him about that,” Church said while demonstrating Grissom’s prance. “He was fiesty. He knew what he wanted, and he had the knowledge to get what he wanted.” It was Church’s job to keep the astronauts alive in space by monitoring their health on the ground. “It was a once-in-a-lifetime job,” Church admits. She left McDonnell in 1967, shortly after the Gemini project ended.
Articles used with the permission of The Times-Mail News.