AS-101

AS-101 (Apollo Saturn-101) (also designated SA-6) was the sixth flight of the Saturn I launch vehicle, which carried the first boilerplate Apollo spacecraft into low Earth orbit. The test took place on May 28, 1964, lasting for four orbits (about six hours). The spacecraft and its upper stage completed a total of 54 orbits before reentering the atmosphere and crashing in the Pacific Ocean on June 1, 1964.

The flight experienced a single anomaly: one of the eight first-stage Saturn I engines shut down early, but the guidance system compensated by burning the remaining seven engines longer. AS-101 was followed by four more flights to verify the launch aerodynamics of the Apollo command and service module (CSM) and its launch escape system (LES) tower.

Boilerplate Apollo

The first five launches of the Saturn I had carried Jupiter nosecones, a proven design which allowed engineers to focus on development of the rocket. To verify the launch aerodynamics of the CSM, AS-101 carried BP-13, a boilerplate spacecraft that weighed 17,000 pounds (7,700 kg) and duplicated the size and shape of the CSM, and a dummy LES tower. A flight-weight command module (CM) weighed around 12,000 pounds (5,400 kg). The boilerplate spacecraft was instrumented with 116 sensors reading strain, pressure, temperature, heat flux, and acceleration.

Flight

It took three attempts to launch the rocket from Cape Kennedy Air Force Station Space Launch Complex 37B. The first attempt was scrubbed after the liquid oxygen damaged a wire mesh screen during a test, causing fuel contamination.