Of course I was delighted the flight was over, but I still had to worry about cleaning up inside the cabin, I had to worry about the hatch, how to get in the sling, and so on. Alan Shepard cabincleandelight Change image and share on social
It's a very sobering feeling to be up in space and realize that one's safety factor was determined by the lowest bidder on a government contract. Alan Shepard biddercontractdetermine Change image and share on social
Of course, in our grade school, in those days, there were no organized sports at all. We just went out and ran around the school yard for recess. Alan Shepard daygradeorganize Change image and share on social
Whether you are an astronomer or a life scientist, geophysicist, or a pilot, you've got to be there because you believe you are good in your field, and you can contribute, not because you are going to get a lot of fame or whatever when you get back. Alan Shepard astronomerbackcontribute share on social
The excitement really didn't start to build until the trailer - which was carrying me, with a space suit with ventilation and all that sort of stuff - pulled up to the launch pad. Alan Shepard buildcarryexcitement Change image and share on social
Obviously I was challenged by becoming a Naval aviator, by landing aboard aircraft carriers and so on. Alan Shepard aboardaircraftaviator Change image and share on social
Then there was the challenge to keep doing better and better, to fly the best test flight that anybody had ever flown. That led to my being recognized as one of the more experienced test pilots, and that led to the astronaut business. Alan Shepard astronautbusinesschallenge share on social
So everything turned out fine, and we were given the opportunity to go to Washington and be briefed on the project of man in space, and given the opportunity to choose whether we wanted to get involved or not. Alan Shepard briefchoosefine share on social
And I think that still is true of this business - which is basically research and development - that you probably spend more time in planning and training and designing for things to go wrong, and how you cope with them, than you do for things to go right. Alan Shepard basicallybusinesscope share on social
The pilot looked at his cues of attitude and speed and orientation and so on and responded as he would from the same cues in an airplane, but there was no way it flew the same. The simulators had showed us that. Alan Shepard airplaneattitudecue share on social
