The “Successful Failure” That Was Apollo 13 Essay

Apollo 13 was to be the third mission sent from the Apollo Project to land on the Moon. An explosion in one of the oxygen tanks caused the spacecraft to become crippled during the flight and the crew were forced to orbit the Moon and return to the Earth without landing. The Apollo 13 mission was launched on Saturday afternoon, April 11, 1970 from launch complex 39A at Kennedy Space Center. The space prime crew consisted of trained experts Commander James A. Lovell Jr., Command module pilot Ken Mattingly and Lunar module pilot Fred W. Haise Jr. There was also three backup crew members named John W. Young, John L. Swigert Jr. and Charles M. Duke. This crew was ready to step in if for any reason something were to happen to any of the main

One of the important points for leaders in critical situations is the fact that one must remain optimistic and believe in themselves and the team to achieve the set goal. Without the personal conviction managers will not be able to motivate the team to develop new solutions, to continue working and foster collaboration. This leadership style is known as transformational leadership. (LaFasto 2001). After “Houston we have a problem” was transmitted from Apollo 13, Gene Kranz stayed optimistic all time and was convinced that they can manage to get the crew home safely and alive. He believed that Mission Control could overcome all the difficulties occurred. “We are not loosing these men“. One of the other sentences Gene Kranz said “failure is not an option“ emphasizes, that he believed in the goal and was willing to pull out all the stops to get the crew home (Apollo 13 1995).

Apollo 13 launched on April 11, 1970 from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The crewmembers aboard the ship were James A. Lovell Jr., John L. Swigert Jr., and Fred W. Haise, Jr. Before the launch, there had been a few problems. Thomas K. Mattingly was supposed to fly on the Apollo 13 but he was exposed to the measles. He didn’t have the antibodies to fight the disease, causing him to not be able to go into space. Swigert took his place. Right before the launch, one of the technicians saw that the helium tank had a higher pressure than expected. Nothing was done to fix this. During liftoff, the second-stage engine shut down, causing the other engines to run longer than planned. Apollo 13 was off to a rocky start.

A few days later Lovell and his crew take off on the Apollo 13 mission. At first all is well until the second oxygen tank explodes, causing many problems for the crew; the most potent problem being that the crew was losing oxygen fast. Luckily, due to much ingenuity by the crew and mission control, the crew is able to arrive safely to earth without the deaths of any astronauts.

Without the leaders who took control, prioritize and communicated the goals of everyone involved in safely getting Jim, Jack and Fred home. Gene strong resolve of “we have not lost and American in space, and we’re not going to lose one on my watch! Failure is not an option” Gene believed that and how he handled the situation made everyone at mission control believe it also. Everyone at ground control had one goal and they worked together to make sure that that goal was

The film, Apollo 13, is based on the real-life crisis that occurred April 13, 1970 on board the Apollo spacecraft. The two main characters, Gene Kranz (Ed Harris) and Jim Lovell (Tom Hanks) are the key players who will address how a leader is able to survive and thrive in a world in which unexpected events occur on a regular basis. They portray the effective styles of leadership in balance with their ever changing surroundings, as well as their ability to maintain their interpersonal relationships with a group under unfavorable conditions. This film is a powerful movie because it makes clear to the viewer just how often disruptions and discontinuities occur. Also, it is an excellent example of how leaders must be able to meet

On July 20, 1969, humanity did itself proud in spite of all its wars, sadism, hatred, and insanity. We set foot on another planet. Men walked on the moon. This changed our belief in what we could accomplish.

In the movie Apollo 13, Ron Howard experienced many challenges trying to recreate authenticity in the Apollo 13 space mission’s story, while still adding his own creative spin to the movie. In April 1970, National Aeronautic Space Agency (NASA) launched a spacecraft with three astronauts on board this flight. During this mission, Apollo 13 experienced multiple issues, which caused the mission to end earlier than expected. After 20 years had passed, Jim Lovell, one of the Apollo 13, and Jeffrey Kluger wrote Lost Moon: The Perilous Voyage of Apollo 13, which chronicled this event in NASA’s lunar space history. Soon after its release, this book caught the eye of famous actor and soon to be famous director Ron Howard, which caused him to adapt

On April 13, 1970, NASA's Mission Control heard the five words that no control center ever wants to hear: "We've got a problem here." Jack Swigert, an astronaut aboard the Apollo 13 aircraft, reported the problem of broken down oxygen tanks to the Houston Control Center, less than two days after its takeoff on April 11th. Those at the Control Center in Houston were unsure what had happened to the spacecraft, but knew that some sort of explosion had occurred. This so-called explosion sent Apollo 13 spinning away from the Earth at 2,000 miles per hour, 75 percent of the way to the moon. In order to get the astronauts back to the

I watched the movie Apollo 13. This movie was about the Americans making yet another trip to the moon. For the astronauts that were going to the moon, it was a very powerful time for them. It was a goal that they had been working on getting to all of their lives. When they were in space, problems began to arise. The four men soon realized that they were not going to take that special step on the moon. Instead, they had to fight for their life to get their ship back to earth. In the end, they barely made it back home, but back home they were to see their families yet again.

On April 10th James "Jim" Lovell, John L. Swigert, and Fred W. Haise embarked on one of the most historic missions in NASA history. Three days later on April 13th, while performing a routine stir on the O2 tanks, the Apollo 13 mission suffered a terrible electrical malfunction and was forced to make an emergency return mission. The movie has forever contributed two phrases to our everyday cultural vocabulary, "Houston we have a problem", communicated by Jim Lovell, and "Failure is not an option", voiced by Gene Kranz.

The Apollo 11 mission of 1969 marks the biggest leap in technological advancements for humanity. Neil Armstrong is seen taking the first steps on the moon forever making his mark in humanity. However, theories surrounding the moon landing have come to light. Conspiracy theorists say NASA, the National Aeronautics Space Administration, have faked the Apollo 11 moon landing. Yet, present evidence can support the authenticity of the moon landing. Evidence such as photos, rock samples, technology, and computer monitoring support the moon landing. The moon landing of 1969 did happen.

important in the salvaging of Apollo 13. He was faced with problem after problem yet he

The first critical event of the film gives the Apollo 13 astronauts their mission. Alan

Jim Lovell, Fred Haise, and Jack Swigert are assigned to the mission Apollo 13. Their target was the Fra Mauro Formation, a site that interest many scientist, and is located on the south-western center of the moon.(Charles Redmond, October 22, 2004) While giving a tour of NASA, Lovell is told