NASA Missile Hauler...

[ODFever]

NDT - I worked at KSC up until last year and had access to lots of fun places around NASA/CCAFS property, including the Capeside DRMO lot and the NASA excess property warehouse. I never saw any of those vehicles anywhere on Center. A couple of years ago, I watched sections of the Saturn V launch tower get chopped up and sold for scrap. Seeing the picture of the Saturn section being hoisted in the VAB transfer aisle brings back lots of fond memories...

 

[Wayofftrack]

The one I saw at SECO was circa 1975 not longer after the end of Apollo. The probably cut them loose as soon as they could once there were no more Saturns to haul around. I saw lots of Saturn launches and they were spectacular.

 

[Jeff Lakaszcyck]

It turns out that the color photo that started this thread is on display inside the VAB for the public tours they are doing now. As has been mentioned, this was the 1st stage for Apollo 8, the 1st flight to orbit the moon. Here is the placard next to it with some additional info.

I also stumbled across another photo of a NASA M26A1 the other day, it is in an old display case in a VAB hallway. It mostly shows the new VAB in about 1966, but in the foreground is the Pacific & Saturn V dolly with a very primitive test article on it, really nothing more than a skeleton framework. The test article was probably used for facility fit checks. I'll try to get a photo of the photo and post it here.

 

[11Echo]

A few of my pics while in AL and of the rear drive chains on a M26.

 

[NDT]

A picture I ran across today at JSC Houston. Apparently shows the Saturn rocket on display there upon arrival by barge in Houston. Looky who was along for the ride. This would have been in 1977.


I think the connection between the M26 and NASA is this: Marshall Space Flight Center, where the Saturn rockets were developed and manufactured, happens to be co-located with Redstone Arsenal in Alabama. I can see some NASA guys wandering around at Redstone DRMO looking for something to tow the rocket stage transporters around, "hey this looks beefy enough, lets give it a try!" Later the trucks "migrated" to Kennedy Space Center along with the transporters. My guess anyway.

 

[fasttruck]

GL sold a M123 in one of their auctions that was in Florida. It was painted green and had radial tires. I wonder if it was a replacement for the
Pacifics ? GL also sold a 20 year old Allis Chalmers bulldozer about the same time inn Florida that had extremely low hours and teh green paint was still on the tracks.