Page 114 - MY STORY
P. 114

Thiokol  insisted  on  using  the  riskier  higher  strength

            version of Maraging Steel, and Newport News insisted
            that their welding method was more than adequate. After
            some serious soul searching we decided to pull out of the

            relationship—we felt the risks were beginning to mount
            enough to create real problems. Ultimately Thiokol and
            Newport News built a propellant stage large enough to

            proof and then burst test.

            The test was a complete failure!


            The stage burst at much less than working pressure at one

            of  the  weldments.  They  lost  the  competition  to  go
            forward with their design, and we breathed a sigh of relief
            that we had the sense to pull out when we did.


            Incidentally,  this  program  never  went  much  further.
            NASA decided that large pressure-fed liquid propellant

            launch vehicles were not going to be competitive with the
            existing technology  pump-fed  cryogenic liquid systems
            or solid propellant boosters.  We sure learned a lot, and

            thoroughly enjoyed the challenge of forming a team to
            work this kind of product.  Ultimately it was sort of like
            finding the cure for which no disease existed.
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