Here is a video from Mark Felton Productions on the use of the M113 Armoured Personnel Carrier by NASA.
In the event that something went wrong on the launch tower, astronauts could leave their rocket or the Shuttle, get in to a metal cage, then descend down an escape line to a bunker 1200 feet away, jump in to a waiting APC, and drive away, protected by the armour of the vehicle.
Rescue crews also used the M113, and NASA had a small fleet of them. This was the standard US Army troop carrier at the time, and has seen action in countless wars.
The vehicles shown in the video are a light green, but I recall seeing photographs of all-white vehicles in a space magazine many years ago. That was the first time I had heard of NASA using armoured vehicles.
Being such a widely used vehicle, there are many kits of the M113 series, in various scales. So modelling one of these vehicles would be fairly straightforward.
There are some changes, such as the strictly military equipment being removed, like the folding bow plate at the front; and the fitting of extra lights. As far as I know there are no kits of the NASA vehicles, which seems really odd.
Paul Adams from New Zealand
Great video! How cool is that, an actual NASA “space tank!” I saw an old catalog somewhere by Aoshima of Japan, and they offered two Apollo-themed SF kits. One, if memory serves, was a stylized version of the M113. The other, was a streamlined aircraft carrier of some sort, with an Apollo capsule resting on the bow. SFZ
ReplyDeleteHowzat!
ReplyDeleteI never thought I'd see the day where Paul Adams meticulous research finally failed him!
I was aware that Aoshima had made a NASA ground recovery tank as part of their standard Apollo series.
What I didn't expect (as I went looking for proof) was the relevant article on the Planet Die-cast blog was written by some bloke called "Woodsy"!
As an aside, I remember as a kid in the late sixties, seeing the kit of the Recovery Boat in a model shop in Hounslow. The box art was by the masterful Yoshiyuki Takani, a deciple of Shigeru Komatsuzaki.
https://www.planetdiecast.com/index.php?option=com_zoo&task=item&item_id=28589
Great post Paul. I never associate NASA and the military but I suppose they are, hence NASA armoured vehicles. I like to think of NASA like Switzerland, completely neutral. Looey, the proper link to that Japanese Kits Extravaganza article, by Bill Wotan. In 2009, is here on Moonbase https://projectswordtoys.blogspot.com/2009/07/japanese-kit-extravaganza.html?m=1
ReplyDeletePlanet Diecast never asked me if they could use Moonbase material and we are not syndicated as it says on their site!
Hmmm, grabbing content!
ReplyDeleteWho do they think they are? -Meta?
I've been having a little trouble tracking down the origin of those Moonbase Q pieces. I suspect they may be Midori Stingray undersea architecture, but Google isn't being helpful. I should just go to the source and look it up in the Moonbase archives!
Here's a bit more Q on MC Looey https://projectswordtoys.blogspot.com/2015/02/p-and-q-land-japanese-imai-kits.html
ReplyDeleteAnd more elsewhere. Paul Kaiju was an erstwhile contributor to MC and creator of modern vinyl toys. http://skullbrain.org/bb/index.php?threads/the-land-of-ps-and-qs.54259/
ReplyDeleteSorry, I did miss that Aoshima kit. Although I never claimed to be an expert on Japanese space and SF kits. That is a field for the experts.
ReplyDeleteThe Aoshima kit seems to be a mix of features from about three or four different vehicles. It has six wheels, which suggests the older M44 APC; but the side mounted engine grilles are more like the M75; the hull shape is closer to the M113; but the sloping front plate is more like the M114. But at least they were trying.
Ah, I’m glad you found an example of the Aoshima kit. I thought I had a picture of it somewhere, but couldn’t locate it. Yes, Aoshima did not try to be realistic in their interpretation, as the kit was intended to be “sci-fi for children.” But it would have been fine with me! SFZ
DeleteVery cool indeed. But as I was watching the video I couldn't help but think that, no matter how fancy and elaborate their escape plans are or how robust their vehicles, when things begin to go south and catastrophe strikes, it will likely outpace any of their precautions. When you're THAT close to what is essentially one ginormous fuel tank, and things go wrong, humans and their frail devices simply can't move fast enough! Zip line to safety!!?? hahahahaha
ReplyDeleteI think you maybe right Ed!
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