Operations Management Room
Operations Support Room
VIPs
The senior leadership of KSC, Launch Vehicle Operations, and the stage contractors ran tests and countdowns from Area A of the Firing Room.
The senior leaders sat in Row A, the top row of the section, adjacent to the large window that looked out toward the launch pads.
NASA's test supervisor and launch vehicle test conductor were among those in row B.
The contractor test managers for the various stages sat in row C. The astronaut communicator ("Stoney") also sat here during tests and countdowns.
NASA's directors for electrical systems, mechanical and propulsion systems, instrumentation, guidance and control systems, security, and other support functions occupied row D. Support contractor managers (Bendix, IBM) also sat here, as did the range safety liaison.
This diagram shows Area A in Firing Rooms 1 and 3. In Firing Room 2, the positions of the OMR and OSR were reversed.
Throughout 2015, we will be updating this site with detailed information about each control console in Area A, with photographs and descriptions! Check back often.
Apollo 11 Launch Management Team
The listing below, mostly taken from a July 3, 1969 KSC press release, documents the Area A personnel officially scheduled to be on duty at T-0 during the Apollo 11 countdown.
Row A
1. Isom A. “Ike” Rigell, KSC launch vehicle operations (LVO) chief engineer
2. Lee B. James, MSFC Saturn V program manager
3. Andrew J. Pickett, LVO test operations manager
4. Dr. Hans F. Gruene, LVO director
5. Rocco A. Petrone, director, KSC launch operations
6. Dr. Kurt Debus, director, KSC
7. Walt “Kappy” Kapryan, deputy director, KSC launch operations
8. John J. Williams, director, KSC spacecraft operations
9. George M. Low, MSC Apollo program manager
10. John W. “Jack” King, KSC public affairs officer
Row B
1. Randy E. Youmans, LVO chief test conductor
2. Norman M. Carlson, launch vehicle test conductor for Apollo 11
3. E. Ronald “Ron” Bentti, launch vehicle test conductor
4. William H. Schick, space vehicle test supervisor for Apollo 11
5. Bert L. Grenville, space vehicle test supervisor
6. Paul C. Donnelly, launch operations manager
7. Robert E. Moser, launch operations test planning
8. Willie A. Fuller, space vehicle engineer, Boeing-TIE
9. John Heard, KSC spacecraft operations (SCO) CSM test conductor
10. Mack L. Martin, spacecraft test manager, North American Rockwell
11. Marcus Goodkind, spacecraft test manager, Grumman
12. John D. Beeson, SCO LM test conductor
Row C
1. John H. Lundy, senior test conductor, Boeing
2. James Rogers, test conductor engineer, Boeing
3. Robert P. Verdier, test conductor, Boeing
4. W. R. Brown, test conductor engineer, Boeing
5. T. E. Martin, S-II test conductor, North American Rockwell
6. Edwin L. Carpenter, assistant test conductor, North American Rockwell
7. Ronald C. Shane, S-IVB test conductor, McDonnell Douglas
8. George V. Barnum, assistant S-IVB test conductor, McDonnell Douglas
9. Robert C. Bulkley, operations engineer, IBM
10. Thomas R. Kitchens, instrument unit test conductor, IBM
11. Edd C. Witt, complex manager, IBM
12. Robert D. Brooks, electrical engineer, North American Rockwell
13. John A. Gulsby, Sr., SCO ground support equipment engineer
14. David C. Dunn, ACE engineer, North American Rockwell
15. D. R. Moore, SCO ACE ground support equipment engineer
16. William R. Pogue, MSC astronaut communicator
17. Donald K. “Deke” Slayton, director, flight crew operations, MSC; astronaut communicator
18. Joseph F. Battaglia, SCO LC-39 operations
19. Dr. A. C. Harter, MSC biomedical
20. Dr. H. S. Brownstein, NASA HQ biomedical
Row D
Table( end of row) Kelly Fiorentino and John Conaway, LVO instrumentation
0. David C. Moja, LVO electrical networks (end of row; no console)
1. Nels E. Roseland, LVO electrical networks
2. Frank G. Bryan, LVO engineering staff chief
3. Roy Lealman, LVO electrical guidance and control systems chief
4. Lionel E. “Ed” Fannin, LVO mechanical and propulsion systems director
5. Marion D. Edwards, LVO instrumentation chief
6. Donald R. Oswald, LVO quality assurance chief
7. William C. Holmes, launch operations site manager, Boeing
8. John J. Cully, Saturn V program manager, Boeing
9. Albert C. Martin, S-II operations manager, North American Rockwell
10. Harold Eaton Jr., Saturn/Apollo program director, McDonnell Douglas
11. George M. Smith, IBM test operations manager
12. Robert G. Young, display coordinator, KSC technical support
13. Albert M. Koller, Jr., LVO technical assistant
14. Eidophor controller, KSC technical support
15. JoAnn Morgan, chief instrumentation controller, KSC technical support
16. Joseph R. Smith, alternate instrumentation controller, KSC technical support
17. Jansen R. Davenport, communications controller, KSC technical support
18. Joseph N. Barfus, test support controller, KSC technical support
19. G. E. Artley, chief test support manager, KSC technical support
20. Raymond L. Clark, director, technical support directorate
21. Sherman J. Evans, KSC security and safety office
22. Alfred A. Carroll, KSC security
23. Robert E. Woods, KSC safety
24. R. L. DeBendictis, systems safety, Bendix
25. Floyd M. Falkenberry, systems safety, Bendix
26. L. S. Eads, AFETR superintendent of range operations, Pan American
Operations Management Room
Below is a partial listing of the senior leaders manning the OMR, taken from the July 3, 1969 press release and photos from the Apollo 11 launch countdown.
Dr. George E. Mueller, associate administrator for manned spaceflight
Lt. Gen. Sam L. Phillips, Apollo program director, office of manned spaceflight
Charles W. “Chuck” Mathews, deputy associate administrator, office of manned spaceflight
Dr. Wernher von Braun, director, MSFC
Dr. Robert R. Gilruth, director, MSC
Rear Adm. Roderick O. Middleton, KSC Apollo program office manager
Miles Ross, deputy director, KSC operations
Chester M. Lee, Apollo program deputy director