The Central New Jersey Home News from New Brunswick, New Jersey • 6

THE DAILY HOME NEWS NEW BRUNSWICK. 3.. SATURDAY. JANUARY M. 1W NATIONAL AERONAUTICS AND SPACE ADMINISTRATION MANNED SPACECRAFT CENTER Houston, Texas 77Q58 1 JL IN SCPIV trCH TO: CB VX( 196S .1 1 ''J: "I 11 I "7r A i Girls and Boys of the Virgil I.

Grissom School Cindy Street and Sims Avenue Old Bridge, New Jersey O8857 Dear Girls and Boys: I appreciate your naming your school the- Virgil I. Grissom School. Perhaps you vould like a bit of advice. I suggest that you work diligently on your lessons every day and avail yourselves of every opportunity to get a good sound education. SPACE STROLL Photo show, Col Edward Best wishes to each of you.

Sincerely, mm ASTRONAUTS THREE Recent photo thowt Apollo 1 astronauts, from left, Roger Chafee, Edward Whito and Virgil Grissom, seated intido Apollo 1 spacecraft simula-tor during test timilar to on which resulted in a flash fir yesterday. (UPI Telephoto) Gas, Ed and Roger Shared One Love-They Lived to Fly Virgil I. Grissom White on his historic 21-minute wai 4 mission. White, Roger end V.re.1 Grissom were killed yesterday by a flash fir. in Apollo moon module during a test.

(UPI Telephoto) White's Saddest Moment: the End Of a Space Walk Lt Colonel, USAF NASA Astronaut In May of 1966, Lt. Col. Virgil I. Grissom sent this letter to students of Madison a letter that has now become a sad momento in the history of that community. Death on the Pad Stalls Moon Dash neuver much better if I just had the gun, but I'll manage.

The sun in space is not blinding but it's quite nice. I can sit out here and see the whole California coast. Flight surgeon: lt looks great. He's just ripping along at a great rate." (White's pulse beat had jumped from a normal 50 to 178.) EDITOR'S NOTE Astro-naut Edward H. Whit.

II, who died yesterday in th. launch pad tragedy at Cap. Kennedy, electrified th. nation with his dramatic 21-mimit stroll in spac. Her.

are th. highlights of th. chatter between Whit, and command pilot, James A. McDivitt, during the spac walk. ferent design, more nearly like the one that some day will fly men to thp mnnn This nrnhahlv MANNED SPACE CENTER.

MANNED SPACE CENTER, Huston, Texas AP) They knew each other as Gus. Ed and Roger. And they shared one real kive that bound them together as a team they lived to fly. For Air Force Lt. Col.

Virgil 1. Grissom, the first Apollo mission would have been his third trip into space, a distinction no men today can claim. For Air Force Lt. Col. YA-ward II White II, it was a flight that commanded his eagerness as much as his first when he slipped outside Gemini 4 for a breathtaking 21-minute walk in space.

America's first. For Navy Lt. Crmlr. Roger B. Chaffee, it would have been the fulfillment of a dream, a dream to fly in space.

He was a rookie, getting his first opportunity to travel in that weightless void. The three died together Friday, suddenly and apparently without warning, when a flash children. The son of an Air Force general, White, 36, was born in San Antonio, but lived there only a short time. As a "military brat" he was at a loss to call any place his home town. He was graduated from West Point and later earned a master's degree in aeronautical engineering from the University of Michigan.

Still later he attended test pilot school at Edwards Air Force Base, Calif. Deeply Religious A deeply religious man. While, a Methodist, attended church regularly. He kept his six-foot frame in top physical condition. In fact, he ranked No.

1 in physical aptitude in his class of 1052 at West Point, and set a 440-yard hurdle record. He married the former Patricia E. Finegan of Washington, DC, end they had a son and a would bring on a reshuffling of' Houston. Texas (AP) Edward the flight plan and additional H. White II had to be ordered training to acquaint the crew Madison Schools Living Shrines To Space Heroes Continued From Page One future visit by Astronaut Edward White to the township.

The school board had been striving to have White present at the dedication of a new upper elementary school in his honor. Plans to name the new school after the astronaut will not be changed, board members aid. Memorial Service Another board member, Richard Pine, a co-chairman of the Grissom school dedication, stated his hopes to arrange a memorial service for the fallen astronauts. "It's as though they were a part of the life of the township," Pine added, "and I feel that something should be done." Mayor Victor O'Brien summed up the feelings of the township when he expressed his "shock and disbelief" in hearing of the accident. "I was given a copy of Lt.

Col. Grissom's letter to our school children last year," he added, "and I remember how impressed I was with the strength and simplicity of his words. I know that the entire township will join me in expressing the great personal loss we all feel upon receiving the news of his death." McDivitt: Hey, Ed, smile. White: I'm looking right down your gun barrel, huh? All right. McDivitt: You smeared np my windshield, you dirty dog.

You see how it's all smeared up there. Looking Right Down White: Yep. We're looking right down on Houston. McDivitt: Yeah, that's Galveston Bay right there. Mission control: The flight director says get back in.

White: This is fun. McDivitt: Well, back in. Come on. Ok, ok. Don't wear yourself out now.

Just come on in. White: (laughing) I'm not coming in. Aren't you going to hold my hand? McDivitt: No, come on in. Ed, come on in here. Come on.

Let's get back in here before it gets MANNED SPACE CENTER, Houston, Tex. (AP) America's moon program has suffered heavily, not only by the personal tragedy of losing three astronauts, but also by stalling perhaps for months the effort to land men on the moon by 1970. However, officials say it is too early to tell whether the national goal of trying a moon trip by the end of the decade is in jeopardy after yesterday's grim ca-tastrophe on a Cape Kennedy, launch pad. "If they are able to quickly determine what happened, the program will go on," said Rep. Olin Teague.

a high ranking member of the House Aeronautics Committee. "If not, it will have to wait until we find out." Simulated Flight Air Force Lt. Col Virgil I. Grissom Lt. Col Edward H.

White II and Navy Lt. Comdr. Roger B. Chaffee died during a simulated flight of their Apollo spaceship when a flash fire engulfed the vehicle. fire erupted inside the Apollo daughter, spaceship they were to take on Chaffee inherited his love for a voyaee of up to 14 days in or with the new design.

The Schirra crew's original spaceship is on the shelf and possibly available. It was forced aside when a tank in the service module, or propulsion and equipment section, ruptured last fall. Major Decisions Whatever the case on which spaceship is used, the major decisions will be made by a team picked to investigate the fire. Should they order a redesign, it would require months to make the changes, then to put the modified craft through extensive tests. Officials emphasized that despite the tragedy they intend to press ahead in the exploration of space.

Vice President Hubert H. Humphrey, chairman of the national aeronautics and space council, said: "The United States will push ever forward in space and the memory of these men will be an inspiration to all future spacefarers." the air. His father, Donald Chaffee of Grand Rapids, is a former barnstormer who flew at county fairs in an open cockpit airplane. The astronaut was a slight, dark-haired men who at 31 already had begun to gray. Coworkers praised him as a smart engineer.

Grissom had said: "Roger is one of the smartest boys I've ever run into." dark. White: It's the saddest mo ment of my life. Several major factors are involved in determining how long the National Aeronautics and Space Administration now must wait before launching its first manned Apollo flight, the mission of up to two weeks Grissom, White and Chaffee were to begin Feb. 21. First, an investigating board must determine exactly what caused the flash fire, whether it was something only peculiar to this one spaceship, or whether it was a problem that might force a redesign of the Apollo vehicle's systems.

Matter of Equipment Then, there is the matter of equipment whether the spaceship involved in the fire must be completely discarded and a new one used in its place. Apparently the vehicle was charred inside and out. Paul Haney, voice of the astronauts, said it was "heavily damaged." NASA has other spaceships. The delays would result, though, from weeks of testing required before a vehicle is taken to a launch pad. New astronauts must be trained.

However, the backup crewmen who now will take over the prime slots have had the benefit of months of training. They are Navy Capt. Walter M. Schirra Air Force Maj. Donn F.

Eisele and civilian Walter Cunningham. Shakeup In Scheduling Schirra. Eisele and Cunningham originally were slated to fly the second Apollo mission, but a shakeup in scheduling caused by other problems forced their flight to be canceled. They then became backups to the first crew. NASA could possibly play "musical chairs," so to speak, by moving the spacecraft tabbed for the second mission to the first.

However, it is of a dif- back into his spacecraft when he became the first American to take a space walk. White returned reluctantly after turning his scheduled 12-minute walk into a dramatic 21-minute stroll as Gemini 4 swept across the Pacific and the United States June 3, 1965. Flight director Christopher C. Kraft's "get back in" order was relayed by command pilot James A. McDivitt.

"I'm coming," White replied. He later emphasized his reluctance by saying, "It's the saddest moment of my life." Stands Up While over Hawaii on the third revolution of the 62-orbit mission, McDivitt reported White had opened the hatch and was standing up. Three minutes later mission control reported White was walking in space. Here are the highlights of the space walk chatter between the astronauts: White: The only problem I have is that I haven't got enough fuel. (His jet-powered maneuvering gun ran out of fuel rather quickly.) I've exhausted the fuel now.

I'm looking right down and it looks like we're coming up on the coast of California. There is absolutely no disorientation association. McDivitt: One thing about it when Ed gets out there and starts whipping around it sure makes the spacecraft tough to control. White: I'm very thankful in having the experience to be first. McDivitt: Move slowly and I'll take your picture.

White: Right now I could ma ft ix' SCHIARRA CUNNINGHAM I Ml DROUGHT RELIEF NEW DELHI, India AP) Ambassador Chester Bowles has presented Prime Minister Indira Gandhi a check for 203,000 rupees ($27,300) for the relief of people in drought-stricken Bihar State. The rupees were donated by Americans in India. 'I: bit around earth, beginning Feb, 21. Hard-Luck Astronaut Some called Gus Grissom a hard-luck astronaut. As one of the famed original seven Mercury spacemen, he became the second American to fly in space.

Taking 15-minute sub-orbital flight July 21. 19GI he had to swim for his life when his tiny spaceship, LuVrty Bell 7, blew its hatch and sank. On March 23, 15. he and Navy Cmdr. John W.

Young had the honor of launching the United Stetes into its highly successful Gemini program with a three-orbit flight in Gemini 3. Grissom. 40. was a short man with a deep, business-like voice who wore his hair in a crew cut. Born in Mitchell.

he once said he decided as a sixth grader there, watching airplanes overhead, that the flying business as for him. The Air Force turned him down because he was too young, only 17. hen he first triwi to enlist as fighter pilot in World War II He got on duty a year later, but as a typist. Marries Sweetheart He married his high school sweetheart, Betty Moore, durng his first leave. Alter the war he worked as a fry cork in a hamburger shop, while his wife worked as a telephone operator, to graduECe from Purdue University.

During the Korean War he finally won hi wings, going on to fly 100 missions and win the Distinguished Hying Cross He became an astronaut in 1959 Grissom. as were White and Chaffee, was the father of two i rage ay Moots Backup Crew Into Limelight SPACE CENTER, Houston, Texas (AP) The tragedy at Cape Kennedy, that wiped out the men scheduled to make America's first Apollo flight, shot a backup crew of one space veteran and two rookies into the spotlight. The backup crew for the Apol- hr n( A Si fi- DRINKERS NEW YORK Americans' 1966 beer consumption is estimated at 104 million barrels, 3.7 percent over 1965. hi i i i 7 1 10 mgnt was composed of Navy Capt. Walter M.

Schirra civilian Walter Cunni i 1 -iN 1 and Air Force Maj. Donn F. AND THEN TRAGEDY Astronaut. Virgil Grissom, Edward Whit, and Roger left to right, shown visiting Hi. Saturn I launch pad recently, wer.

kill.d yesterday when fir. their Apollo spacecraft. The Apollo was mounted atop th. Saturn booster for a simulated launching. Th.

three were t. ha v. flown th. ship Int. orbit Feb.

21. (UPI Telephoto) Eisele. am Schirra and Eisele were en 2 Young Suspects Held in Shooting a robbery attempt in a hallwav. The pistol exploded in his face and a bullet struck him over the left eye. Schaeffer was taken tj Manhattan Eye and Ear Hospital where he remains in fair condition but is in danger of losing the eye.

route from EISELE Cape Kennedy to Houston by Air Force jet at the time of the tragedy, a spokesman for the' National Aeronautics and Space Administration said. The last time a prime Tight crew was killed, in the plane crash that killed Gemini pilot Elliot See and Air Force Maj. Charles A. Bassett JI, the backup crew took their place. The deaths leave the Amerl-can space program with 47 NEW YORK (AP)-Police arrested two teenage boys night ind charged them with shooting welfare case orVer last Wednesday.

Booked on charges of felonious assault and Sullivan Law violation were Leroy Davis. IS, and Eldridge Womack, 17, both The Bronx. They were charged with shooting Welfare Department Investigator John Schaeffer, 24. during New Mexico produces guano, meerschaum, peanuts, petrified wood and potash. SHOCK AND SYMPATHY First visible sign of public reaction to Apollo 1 disaster yesterday was this marque, sign displayed at Cap.

Kennedy coffee shop shortly after news of the disaster was received. (UPI Telephoto) 9 Today's Message: 'We Mourn the loss I Wave of Shock A patron, describing the wave of shock and sadness which swept the city after the deaths of the Apollo crew was broadcast, said: "I haven't seen anything like it since President Kennedy was killed. People left their dinners to listen to the news." Grissom was 'Gus" to the people of Cocoa Beach. They couldn't believe he was dead. "He was one of us.

he hid been here so long." said Mayor Robert Murkshe. "The seven COCOA BEACH. Fla. APt -It's a tradition among the innkeepers of Cocoa Beach to letter their marquees with jaunty good luck wishes for space-bound astronauts. Today, for the first time in thf history of the U.S.

space program, the message was tragic: "We mourn the loss of three fine Americans." In a restaurant popular with the Tiers, the owner draped a black scarf over a plaque listing the achievements of Virgil I Grissom. Mercury astronauts were part of the community." Won't Realii. The Cocoa mayor learned of the accident during a Jaycee distinguished service awards banquet last night. Two years ago hj saw Grissom honored at the same banquet. "We wxm't realize what has happened until tomorrow," said Roland Driskill.

Mrs. Don Holt, owner of a restaurant where astronauta spent many off duty hours, said. "We have lost three friends. I just couldn't believe it. You could hear a pin drop in the lounge." She recalled that after Alan Shepard's suborbital flight first for an American they held a celebration with their wives at her restaurant.

Stomp Down Citing "They brought in pia.io and did the bunny hug It sounded like they were stomping down the ceiling." Said Carl Ransom. ho worked for the Mercury astronauts when they each had an interest in i motel, "When you first hear it you think 'that's not right. There must be a mistake. But after the second and third time it comes into being Terrible." "We knew it could happen," said Ransom, "but it didn't hap-pen the way everyone expected it would. I guess we all thcuuht it would happen in space but not on the pad." Today, Cocoa Beach's new daily newspaper, printed its first extra edition.

DEATH CABIN The Apoll. cabin section in which three ettronauts died yesterday Is shown in this picture taken in August, 164. It is believed that a flash fir. engulfed Apollo 1 spacecraft during simulated launch tests at Cap. Kennedy last night.

(UPI Telephoto).