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Show 12 A DESERET NEWS AND TELEGRAM, " 10 July 1964 GREEN RIVER, Emery County-A slender two-stage Athena missile was f i red from here Wednesday afternoon and scored a direct hit on its target at the White Sands Missile Range hi New Mexico. -.-..' The successful 450-mile flight marked the end of six .months of frustration which began last February when the first of a scheduled 77 firings took place. At that time the Air Force test rocket had an electrical malfunction and veered off course, impacting outside the target area in the wrong state, not far from a small Colorado community. A second attempt in May was deliberately blown up a few seconds after launch tracking equipment showed the: missile again was off course. Wednesday's successful shot opened the door for the $65. million program to move full speed ahead in a test effort expected to last about two years, At the height of the program it is planned that Athena missiles will be fired at the rate of about one a week. The 50-foot, eight-ton missile thundered off its launch pad at .; 3:23' p.m., its solid fuel motors hurling it to an altitude of, 800,000! feet before it crashed into the target a few moments later. Instruments in th§ payload capsule included cameras which are expected to provide a view of the Four Corners area from an altitude of 140 miles. Although this first launch used only two stages, the regular Athena test shots will feature four solid fuel stages. Two of these will fire the missile to the proper height and the second pair will drive it back towards the earth at a velocity duplicating characteristics of an intercontinental rocket. Problems in tracting, anti-missile defense and payload re-entry will be studied. Results could have wide application in the space effort as well as military missile projects, the Air Force has indicated.. The multi-million dollar launch facilities at Green River have been a boon to the isolated town. Talks are under way on the possibility of expanding facilities to handle liquid fuel rockets. There is a good chance that the community may become a permanent off-range launch site] :or White Sands which only, has a short-distance range of 1001 miles within its own boundaries. Athena Goes Awry Second Time, No Word on Next Attempt Times Independent, Moab, Utah >4 June j-jjilco J-iiU.cjjeiiu.eiiL,, r The second attempt to fire an Athena missile, much delayed Air Force test program, failed Thursday when the missile was destroyed shortly after it was launched. It was last TMrsday, The Hi-fated missile, the only soM fuel missile fe production, was fired' at 5:15 p.m., said1 destroyed 7& seconds later when it reportedly veered' oSO. coarse. 5 p.m. because of high velocity winds. ing from the Green River , missile base this week on the second* firing of the Athena destroyed approximately 70 seconds after it left the pad. s^g~thVva^ frW Range officials gave no nn- ^ TH ^ ^. mediate reason for the fad- rfhg. ^&s ^p^edi ure- omlhtmsly cl<$se" to .__- One military spokesman re-- Guff Sulphur potasft mill o» portedly said it was his opin- the' bamks o'f Hie CO&radfr ri^ ion the missile had not mal- ver2tT miles ffa)m MffSafe} and! functioned but that possibly work'mw said* they .ftesrd' ai a "range safety" factor was ghud; stortly after whlclii involved The first firing of swmded' dlose: Bfo; offltel ml--the, Athena, dubbed the "flying junk pile," -was staged last February. The missile quest of' debris fSMii^ tfe? mis malfunctioned in flight, scat- sU^, however, tering debris off course in Colorado. Thursday's launch litary peKSOttnel Have' report, at th«? oiffices! of H3S' ih> No able? infoEffiatiorri was the- a'Vail-itr was delayed 2% hours from 2:15 p.m. until shortly after charge or tfte pulb'ifc relations officas at fibs' Qfeen fiver base at presis time this Week; No comment was forthcom- InforisatiOHy they would? have to be" acquired from, Iforten'.1. M-f'-' in |
