Guenter Wendt
Encyclopedia
Günter F. Wendt was a German-American engineer noted for his work in the U.S. manned spaceflight program. An employee of McDonnell Aircraft
and later North American Aviation
, he was in charge of the spacecraft close-out crews at the launch pads for the entire Mercury
and Gemini programs (1961–1966), and the manned phase of the Apollo program (1968–1975) at the Kennedy Space Center
(KSC). His official title was Pad Leader.
In NASA
documentary films, Wendt appears as the bespectacled, thin man in a bow-tie and white cap and coat, usually standing near the hatch, clipboard in hand; or bending over seated crew members, pulling their safety harnesses snug for launch.
in Berlin and served aboard Luftwaffe (air force) night fighters as a flight engineer during World War II
. While there, he spent a four-year apprenticeship learning aircraft building.
Immediately after the war there were few job opportunities for engineers in Germany, so Wendt decided to emigrate to the United States
in 1949 and join his divorced father in St. Louis, Missouri
. McDonnell Aircraft
was interested in hiring Wendt as an engineer, but could not hire a German citizen since the company was working on U.S. Navy contracts. He found a job as a truck mechanic (though he had never worked on trucks) and within one year became shop supervisor. He obtained his U.S. citizenship in 1955 and was immediately hired by McDonnell.
during the Mercury and Gemini manned space programs beginning with the flight of Ham the chimpanzee
in 1961. He came to be regarded as a welcomed good luck figure to the astronauts; always the last reassuring earth-bound face the crew members saw, kidding with them and wishing them a successful flight as he directed completion of the complex pad close-out procedures just prior to launch.
Wendt's was the final word for the launch tower white room team responsible for loading and securing the crewmen, ensuring that spacecraft instrumentation, switches and controls were correct for launch, and securing the hatch. Nobody touched anything without his permission.
Once a stubborn engineer intended to personally make a spacecraft change, with or without Wendt's permission. Wendt called security to have him removed.
Astronaut Pete Conrad
, known for his sense of humor, once said of Wendt:
Mercury astronaut John Glenn
fondly nicknamed Wendt "der Führer of der Launch Pad" (from his German-accented English) for his efficient, disciplined, yet good-humored pad crew leadership. His strict approach to configuration control of the equipment and commitment to safety was welcomed by the astronauts, and earned him their respect. Before Glenn's Mercury flight, Wendt tried to reassure Glenn's wife:
In January 1967, Wendt, still with McDonnell (soon to become McDonnell Douglas
), was supervising the test range in Titusville, Florida. Since NASA changed contractors for the Apollo program to North American Aviation
(soon to become North American Rockwell), he was not involved with the Apollo 1
spacecraft, in which a cabin fire caused the deaths of Gus Grissom
, Edward H. White
, and Roger Chaffee. After the accident, several people expressed to him the wish that he had been there, as if he might have caught the fatal problem in time to prevent the tragedy. But Wendt himself did not presume to believe this:
flight, Mercury and Gemini veteran Wally Schirra
, insisted on having Wendt back in charge of the pad crew for his flight, and convinced chief astronaut Deke Slayton
to get North American to hire him. Schirra personally convinced North American's vice-president and general manager for launch operations, Bastian "Buz" Hello, to change Wendt's shift from midnight to daytime so he could be pad leader for Apollo 7.
During the Apollo 7 liftoff, crew member Donn Eisele said to the ground, "I vonder vere Guenter Vendt." (The German language pronounces the letter w as a v.)
Crew members of the other Apollo missions shared an equally high regard for Wendt, and he stayed on with the Pad Leader title through the Skylab
and ASTP
missions.
He continued to work at KSC into the early Space Shuttle
flights until retiring in 1989.
Wendt later served as a technical consultant for several TV and movie features, and co-authored his 2001 autobiography, The Unbroken Chain, with Russell Still (Apogee Books
, ISBN 1-896522-84-X). He remained a personal friend of many early astronauts.
Wendt stated in a 2004 interview with Parade magazine that he would occasionally receive fan mail for Cheers actor George Wendt
.
Wendt died on May 3, 2010 at his home in Merritt Island, Florida
following congestive heart failure and a stroke. His survivors include his three daughters, Irina Thompson, Norma Wendt, and Sandra Taylor; five grandchildren; a great-grandson; and a great-great-grandson.
and several Group Achievement awards. He received a NASA Lifetime Achievement Award in 2009.
Wendt has several moments of screen time in the 1998 documentary One Giant Leap.
McDonnell Aircraft
The McDonnell Aircraft Corporation was an American aerospace manufacturer based in St. Louis, Missouri. The company was founded on July 16, 1939 by James Smith McDonnell, and was best known for its military fighters, including the F-4 Phantom II, and manned spacecraft including the Mercury capsule...
and later North American Aviation
North American Aviation
North American Aviation was a major US aerospace manufacturer, responsible for a number of historic aircraft, including the T-6 Texan trainer, the P-51 Mustang fighter, the B-25 Mitchell bomber, the F-86 Sabre jet fighter, the X-15 rocket plane, and the XB-70, as well as Apollo Command and Service...
, he was in charge of the spacecraft close-out crews at the launch pads for the entire Mercury
Project Mercury
In January 1960 NASA awarded Western Electric Company a contract for the Mercury tracking network. The value of the contract was over $33 million. Also in January, McDonnell delivered the first production-type Mercury spacecraft, less than a year after award of the formal contract. On February 12,...
and Gemini programs (1961–1966), and the manned phase of the Apollo program (1968–1975) at the Kennedy Space Center
Kennedy Space Center
The John F. Kennedy Space Center is the NASA installation that has been the launch site for every United States human space flight since 1968. Although such flights are currently on hiatus, KSC continues to manage and operate unmanned rocket launch facilities for America's civilian space program...
(KSC). His official title was Pad Leader.
In NASA
NASA
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration is the agency of the United States government that is responsible for the nation's civilian space program and for aeronautics and aerospace research...
documentary films, Wendt appears as the bespectacled, thin man in a bow-tie and white cap and coat, usually standing near the hatch, clipboard in hand; or bending over seated crew members, pulling their safety harnesses snug for launch.
Early years
A native of Berlin, Germany, Wendt studied mechanical engineeringMechanical engineering
Mechanical engineering is a discipline of engineering that applies the principles of physics and materials science for analysis, design, manufacturing, and maintenance of mechanical systems. It is the branch of engineering that involves the production and usage of heat and mechanical power for the...
in Berlin and served aboard Luftwaffe (air force) night fighters as a flight engineer during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. While there, he spent a four-year apprenticeship learning aircraft building.
Immediately after the war there were few job opportunities for engineers in Germany, so Wendt decided to emigrate to the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
in 1949 and join his divorced father in St. Louis, Missouri
St. Louis, Missouri
St. Louis is an independent city on the eastern border of Missouri, United States. With a population of 319,294, it was the 58th-largest U.S. city at the 2010 U.S. Census. The Greater St...
. McDonnell Aircraft
McDonnell Aircraft
The McDonnell Aircraft Corporation was an American aerospace manufacturer based in St. Louis, Missouri. The company was founded on July 16, 1939 by James Smith McDonnell, and was best known for its military fighters, including the F-4 Phantom II, and manned spacecraft including the Mercury capsule...
was interested in hiring Wendt as an engineer, but could not hire a German citizen since the company was working on U.S. Navy contracts. He found a job as a truck mechanic (though he had never worked on trucks) and within one year became shop supervisor. He obtained his U.S. citizenship in 1955 and was immediately hired by McDonnell.
McDonnell Aircraft
As a McDonnell engineer, Wendt supervised spacecraft launch pad preparations at Cape CanaveralCape Canaveral Air Force Station
Cape Canaveral Air Force Station is an installation of the United States Air Force Space Command's 45th Space Wing, headquartered at nearby Patrick Air Force Base. Located on Cape Canaveral in the state of Florida, CCAFS is the primary launch head of America's Eastern Range with four launch pads...
during the Mercury and Gemini manned space programs beginning with the flight of Ham the chimpanzee
Mercury-Redstone 2
Mercury-Redstone 2 was an American space mission, launched at 16:55 UTC on January 31, 1961 from LC-5 at Cape Canaveral, Florida. Mercury spacecraft No...
in 1961. He came to be regarded as a welcomed good luck figure to the astronauts; always the last reassuring earth-bound face the crew members saw, kidding with them and wishing them a successful flight as he directed completion of the complex pad close-out procedures just prior to launch.
Wendt's was the final word for the launch tower white room team responsible for loading and securing the crewmen, ensuring that spacecraft instrumentation, switches and controls were correct for launch, and securing the hatch. Nobody touched anything without his permission.
- "There is no reason to say I am narrow-minded. Just do it my way and you will have no problem at all." – Wendt
Once a stubborn engineer intended to personally make a spacecraft change, with or without Wendt's permission. Wendt called security to have him removed.
- "The [security] guy comes up on the elevator and he says [to the engineer], 'You like me to put handcuffs on you, or are you going to go by yourself?' The engineer dropped his jaw, but he left. Maybe this system is wrong, but I have had pretty good success with it. If I don't do a good job, I get out. I can't compromise." – Wendt
Astronaut Pete Conrad
Pete Conrad
Charles "Pete" Conrad, Jr. was an American naval officer, astronaut and engineer, and the third person to walk on the Moon during the Apollo 12 mission. He set an eight-day space endurance record along with command pilot Gordon Cooper on the Gemini 5 mission, and commanded the Gemini 11 mission...
, known for his sense of humor, once said of Wendt:
- "It's easy to get along with Guenter. All you have to do is agree with him."
Mercury astronaut John Glenn
John Glenn
John Herschel Glenn, Jr. is a former United States Marine Corps pilot, astronaut, and United States senator who was the first American to orbit the Earth and the third American in space. Glenn was a Marine Corps fighter pilot before joining NASA's Mercury program as a member of NASA's original...
fondly nicknamed Wendt "der Führer of der Launch Pad" (from his German-accented English) for his efficient, disciplined, yet good-humored pad crew leadership. His strict approach to configuration control of the equipment and commitment to safety was welcomed by the astronauts, and earned him their respect. Before Glenn's Mercury flight, Wendt tried to reassure Glenn's wife:
- "Annie, we cannot guarantee you safe return of John. This would be lying. Nobody can guarantee you this – there is too much machinery involved. The one thing I can guarantee you is that when the spacecraft leaves it is in the best possible condition for a launch. If anything should happen to the spacecraft, I would like to be able to come and tell you about the accident and look you straight in the eye and say, 'We did the best we could.' My conscience then is clear and there is where my guideline is."
In January 1967, Wendt, still with McDonnell (soon to become McDonnell Douglas
McDonnell Douglas
McDonnell Douglas was a major American aerospace manufacturer and defense contractor, producing a number of famous commercial and military aircraft. It formed from a merger of McDonnell Aircraft and Douglas Aircraft in 1967. McDonnell Douglas was based at Lambert-St. Louis International Airport...
), was supervising the test range in Titusville, Florida. Since NASA changed contractors for the Apollo program to North American Aviation
North American Aviation
North American Aviation was a major US aerospace manufacturer, responsible for a number of historic aircraft, including the T-6 Texan trainer, the P-51 Mustang fighter, the B-25 Mitchell bomber, the F-86 Sabre jet fighter, the X-15 rocket plane, and the XB-70, as well as Apollo Command and Service...
(soon to become North American Rockwell), he was not involved with the Apollo 1
Apollo 1
Apollo 1 was scheduled to be the first manned mission of the Apollo manned lunar landing program, with a target launch date of February 21, 1967. A cabin fire during a launch pad test on January 27 at Launch Pad 34 at Cape Canaveral killed all three crew members: Command Pilot Virgil "Gus"...
spacecraft, in which a cabin fire caused the deaths of Gus Grissom
Gus Grissom
Virgil Ivan Grissom , , better known as Gus Grissom, was one of the original NASA Project Mercury astronauts and a United States Air Force pilot...
, Edward H. White
Edward Higgins White
Edward Higgins White, II was an engineer, United States Air Force officer and NASA astronaut. On June 3, 1965, he became the first American to "walk" in space. White died along with fellow astronauts Gus Grissom and Roger Chaffee during a pre-launch test for the first manned Apollo mission at...
, and Roger Chaffee. After the accident, several people expressed to him the wish that he had been there, as if he might have caught the fatal problem in time to prevent the tragedy. But Wendt himself did not presume to believe this:
- "...maybe it was meant for me not to be there because I would have taken it very hard."
North American Rockwell
Grissom's backup and replacement on the Apollo 7Apollo 7
Apollo 7 was the first manned mission in the American Apollo space program, and the first manned US space flight after a cabin fire killed the crew of what was to have been the first manned mission, AS-204 , during a launch pad test in 1967...
flight, Mercury and Gemini veteran Wally Schirra
Wally Schirra
Walter Marty Schirra, Jr. was an American test pilot, United States Navy officer, and one of the original Mercury 7 astronauts chosen for the Project Mercury, America's effort to put humans in space. He is the only person to fly in all of America's first three space programs...
, insisted on having Wendt back in charge of the pad crew for his flight, and convinced chief astronaut Deke Slayton
Deke Slayton
Donald Kent Slayton , better known as Deke Slayton, was an American World War II pilot and later, one of the original NASA Mercury Seven astronauts....
to get North American to hire him. Schirra personally convinced North American's vice-president and general manager for launch operations, Bastian "Buz" Hello, to change Wendt's shift from midnight to daytime so he could be pad leader for Apollo 7.
During the Apollo 7 liftoff, crew member Donn Eisele said to the ground, "I vonder vere Guenter Vendt." (The German language pronounces the letter w as a v.)
Crew members of the other Apollo missions shared an equally high regard for Wendt, and he stayed on with the Pad Leader title through the Skylab
Skylab
Skylab was a space station launched and operated by NASA, the space agency of the United States. Skylab orbited the Earth from 1973 to 1979, and included a workshop, a solar observatory, and other systems. It was launched unmanned by a modified Saturn V rocket, with a mass of...
and ASTP
Apollo-Soyuz Test Project
-Backup crew:-Crew notes:Jack Swigert had originally been assigned as the command module pilot for the ASTP prime crew, but prior to the official announcement he was removed as punishment for his involvement in the Apollo 15 postage stamp scandal.-Soyuz crew:...
missions.
He continued to work at KSC into the early Space Shuttle
Space Shuttle
The Space Shuttle was a manned orbital rocket and spacecraft system operated by NASA on 135 missions from 1981 to 2011. The system combined rocket launch, orbital spacecraft, and re-entry spaceplane with modular add-ons...
flights until retiring in 1989.
Later years
Wendt's wife, the former Herma Riggert, died in 1993 after more than 40 years of marriage.Wendt later served as a technical consultant for several TV and movie features, and co-authored his 2001 autobiography, The Unbroken Chain, with Russell Still (Apogee Books
Apogee Books
Apogee Books is an imprint of Canadian publishing house Collector's Guide Publishing. The Apogee imprint began with "Apollo 8 The NASA Mission Reports" in November 1998 at the request of astronaut Buzz Aldrin, second man on the moon. The first publication by Apogee was printed to celebrate the 30th...
, ISBN 1-896522-84-X). He remained a personal friend of many early astronauts.
Wendt stated in a 2004 interview with Parade magazine that he would occasionally receive fan mail for Cheers actor George Wendt
George Wendt
George Robert Wendt III is an American actor, best known for the roles of Norm Peterson and Tug Clarke on the television shows Cheers and Modern Men.-Early life:...
.
Wendt died on May 3, 2010 at his home in Merritt Island, Florida
Merritt Island, Florida
Merritt Island is a census-designated place in Brevard County, Florida, United States. It is located on the east coast of the state on the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2000 census, the population was 36,090. It is part of the Palm Bay – Melbourne – Titusville, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area...
following congestive heart failure and a stroke. His survivors include his three daughters, Irina Thompson, Norma Wendt, and Sandra Taylor; five grandchildren; a great-grandson; and a great-great-grandson.
Awards
Wendt is a recipient of NASA's Letter of Appreciation award, the Silver Snoopy awardSilver Snoopy award
The Silver Snoopy award is a special honor awarded to NASA employees and contractors for outstanding achievements related to human flight safety or mission success...
and several Group Achievement awards. He received a NASA Lifetime Achievement Award in 2009.
On film and television
Wendt has been portrayed in a number of movies and television shows about the US space program, including:- Apollo 13Apollo 13 (film)Apollo 13 is a 1995 American drama film directed by Ron Howard. The film stars Tom Hanks, Kevin Bacon, Bill Paxton, Gary Sinise, Kathleen Quinlan and Ed Harris. The screenplay by William Broyles, Jr...
, 1995, played by Endre Hules – While being fit into his space suit, astronaut Jim Lovell (played by Tom HanksTom HanksThomas Jeffrey "Tom" Hanks is an American actor, producer, writer, and director. Hanks worked in television and family-friendly comedies, gaining wide notice in 1988's Big, before achieving success as a dramatic actor in several notable roles, including Andrew Beckett in Philadelphia, the title...
) chats with Wendt, playfully mocking and repeating Eisele's pun from Apollo 7: "I vonder vere Guenter Vendt." - From the Earth to the Moon, 1998, played by Max WrightMax WrightGeorge Edward Maxwell "Max" Wright is an American actor, best known for his role as Willie Tanner in the sitcom ALF.-Biography:Wright was born George Edward Maxwell Wright in Detroit, Michigan....
- In Search of Liberty Bell 7, Discovery ChannelDiscovery ChannelDiscovery Channel is an American satellite and cable specialty channel , founded by John Hendricks and distributed by Discovery Communications. It is a publicly traded company run by CEO David Zaslav...
documentary, 1999 – Wendt participated in the expedition to raise Gus Grissom'sGus GrissomVirgil Ivan Grissom , , better known as Gus Grissom, was one of the original NASA Project Mercury astronauts and a United States Air Force pilot...
sunken Mercury capsule
Wendt has several moments of screen time in the 1998 documentary One Giant Leap.
External links
- Günter Wendt- The Independent Obituary - 27 May 2010.
- Padleader – The official website of Guenter Wendt
- Wendt biography at JSC
- Wendt oral history transcript at JSC