This 1963 color documentary film about Cape Canaveral launches was produced by the Air Force Missile Test Center. It begins with the sound and sight of rocket nozzles (:08). In July 1950, “Bumper”, a captured German V2 with an Army-developed second stage, is launched (:55-1:10). A bird’s eye view of the proving ground launch pads is shown (1:15-1:30). A Titan II launches but destructs (1:32-2:10). Another Titan II is successfully launched (2:11-2:26). Long range cameras record the staging, also shown from cameras mounted on the second stage (2:27-3:05). Multiple dishes and the HH Arnold track the flight (3:06-3:25). The cone re-entry is captured (3:26-3:35). Range aircraft transmit data (4:00). Inside Patrick Air Force Base Test Center (4:08-4:14), flight information is checked by computers (4:15-4:30). A Gemini spacecraft is readied (4:31-4:44). The Gemini/Titan II Man Rated Complex is shown (4:45). Colonel John G. Albert checks the booster modifications to the Titan (4:46-5:12). Titan III rockets are ignited at a launch pad (5:13-5:30). Atlas is transported and lifted into place. Pods attached to the side contain a variety of scientific instruments prior to liftoff (5:40-7:00). A Minuteman is transported and lowered into its missile silo. A test flight explodes (7:03-8:09). Equipment in a control room is shown (8:10-8:24). A November launch is successful (8:25-8:43). Polaris successfully launches above the water but explodes (8:44-9:16). In 1963, the USS Andrew Jackson (SSBN-619) launches a Polaris A-3X ballistic missile while submerged (9:17-10:05). The Pershing is transported, assembled, erected, and launched during Army test maneuvers (10:06-11:00). The AGM-28 Hound Dog is launched from under the wing of a B-52 (11:01-11:28). An Air Force Mace missile is launched (11:29-12:06). ASSET (Aerothemodynamic Elastic Structural Systems Environmental Tests), the experimental project to test unmanned vehicle reentry, is launched in 1963 on a Thor missile (12:07-12:59). Other Thor Delta launches are shown (12:59-13:35). The Air Force Blue Scout launches equipment to measure the ionosphere (13:36-14:32). A Robin weather rocket is launched, followed by a Nike-Cajun to measure radiation (14:33-15:25). A Nike Smoke rocket is launched to study wind sheer (15:26-15:57). Major Airforce Force Colonel Lenroy Gordon Cooper puts on his astronaut suit, boards the Transfer Van, boards the Faith 7 Mercury-Atlas 9 on May 15, 1963, is launched, splashes down in the capsule, a Navy helicopter hoovers, and Cooper is picked up by the USS Kearsarge (15:58-20:25). An Air Force Officer Club dinner is shown (20:26-21:00). An Apollo rocket is launched for testing (21:02-21:37). Footage is shown of President Kennedy as he exits Air Force One on November 16, 1963 — just one week before his assassination in Dallas — and visits Cape Canaveral. He views the Saturn rocket before taking a helicopter tour and landing on the USNS Observation Island. The President watches a Polaris launch from the submerged USS Andrew Jackson (21:38-24:27). On November 25, 1963, a memorial service is held for the assassinated President at the Cape, at which Vice Commander [Major General] Harry Sands spoke (25:28-25:46). An interplanetary monitoring platform and Centaur are launched (25:48-26:15). Cape Canaveral is renamed Cape Kennedy November 28, 1963 (26:15).

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This film is part of the Periscope Film LLC archive, one of the largest historic military, transportation, and aviation stock footage collections in the USA. Entirely film backed, this material is available for licensing in 24p HD, 2k and 4k. For more information visit http://www.PeriscopeFilm.com