Placide D. Nicaise

The German managers and their rocket engineers at MSFC were locked in a desperate struggle in 1964 to develop Saturn booster stages for the Apollo program. We were preoccupied with our machines and knew very little about what was going on in the wider world. There were actually some pretty interesting things going on that affected all of our futures, but even if we had known, there was nothing that we could have done about it. Our careers, the fate of Huntsville, and the success of the national space program were all pawns in the game of national politics.

Lyndon B. Johnson (LBJ) had become president when JFK was assassinated and he ran for his own term in 1964. He was obviously not pleased to find that Alabama Governor, George Wallace, was one of his opponents. To make matters worse, Wallace made a point that he was only running because he disapproved of LBJ’s policies. Huntsville and Madison County politicians dispatched James Record to visit LBJ in Washington before the election. He was apparently on a mission to smooth LBJ’s ruffled feathers. Record came back with assurances from LBJ that he was well pleased with Huntsville and the way things were progressing at MSFC. As it turned out, Wallace withdrew from the race and was not a factor in the outcome. LBJ defeated Barry Goldwater by the largest majority in history. However, Alabama was one of the few states in the union that went to Goldwater. LBJ was a man that kept up with details, was easily slighted, and had a long memory. He undoubtedly took note of this lack of support.

On March 13, 1965, George Wallace visited Washington DC and had a meeting with LBJ where they were said to have had a frank discussion of social issues. It would be interesting to have the minutes of this meeting between the man that had stood in the schoolhouse door and the most liberal man on social issues that ever sat in the Oval Office. It is easy to imagine that Wallace’s visit didn’t win any support for Huntsville with the Johnson administration. In any case, the NASA administrator, James Webb, announced shortly thereafter that MSFC might be moved from Huntsville if Alabama didn’t change its attitude toward the federal government. Later, news stories from Washington complained that MSFC might have to be moved because NASA headquarters could not get any high-level managers to move to Huntsville.

These announcements took MSFC employees by surprise. We didn’t realize we needed any more high-level managers. Our German led management seemed to be doing a fine job. The colonels that NASA headquarters had sent us a few years before to manage contractors had only increased our level of bureaucracy. We had to laugh about the claim that they couldn’t get managers to move to Huntsville. We had been the fastest growing town in the nation with military officers and corporate executives from every part of the country moving in and settling down here.

The buzzards had began to circle, but before they could really pounce, LBJ became preoccupied with the Vietnam War and decided not to run in the 1968 election. Anyway, things were looking up for the Apollo Program—we did the flyby around the back of the moon that year—and no one wanted to endanger the lunar landing mission. James Webb retired in Oct 1968, so Huntsvillians were able to breathe a sigh of relief.

Meanwhile, MSFC was making some new enemies within NASA. Von Braun and the Germans had so much prestige and such a national following that some people at other centers and NASA headquarters resented it. Since its formation in 1962, MSC had grown rapidly into a major rival with MSFC. In the years that followed, there were some bitter fights over areas of responsibility and what share of the NASA budget each center should get. MSC began to send some of its senior managers to work at headquarters while MSFC kept their close-knit team at home. Also, the corporate executives that rotated through headquarters tended to favor the MSC approach. It gave them a freer hand than the German management who insisted on close supervision of contractors and in getting their money's worth. As a result, headquarters management became closer aligned to MSC and more antagonistic toward MSFC.

It must have eventually become obvious to NASA headquarters and MSC that even working together, they could not get the upper hand over MSFC while the whole country was looking forward to the lunar landing and von Braun was constantly in the national spotlight. He had too much clout to control, and too much of a following to get rid of. The only option was to promote him, get him out of MSFC and then take care of the rest of the Germans after he was gone. The buzzards were circling again and this time they had a plan of attack.

The first lunar landing was made in July 1969 and the astronauts returned as national heroes. There was jubilation and celebrations from one side of the country to the other. One of these celebrations was held around the Courthouse Square in Huntsville to honor von Braun and his renowned team, which had brought such riches and glory to their hometown. Just as they had done a decade earlier, the citizens picked him up on their shoulders while the crowd clapped and cheered. As far as the crowd was concerned, he was their most famous citizen and you could tell by the expression on his face that he was moved by their affection. No one would have predicted that this was to be his last big hurrah, or that he would soon be gone from Huntsville forever.

Apollo 12 went to the moon in Nov 1969 and the astronauts blazed back to Earth in triumph. What was once thought to be impossible was turning into a routine visit. A couple of months after the second lunar landing, the rumors spread that von Braun was leaving MSFC. Von Braun and his family were on vacation in the Bahamas at the time, but his MSFC spokesman, Bart Slattery, held a news conference and denied the story, reminding everyone of how many rumors had circulated in the past about von Braun leaving. Von Braun came back from vacation earlier than expected with a tan and a full beard, but he looked haggard and tired. He soon confirmed that he had indeed been transferred to NASA headquarters. MSFC employees, including von Braun’s closest associates, were stunned at the news.

In February 1970, von Braun left for his new job as Deputy Associate Administrator for Planning at NASA headquarters. He never said much publicly to the employees about his transfer so it was difficult to judge how he felt about the move. Perhaps he felt that he could help sell the Mars program that was being discussed by Thomas Paine, the current NASA administrator. Perhaps he had hoped to send a few projects back to MSFC. Certainly, he must have had some reservations about leaving his old friends and his power base at MSFC. The employees at MSFC were apprehensive about the move, and most thought that he did not leave willingly. It was a landmark decision that would initiate a decline at MSFC from which it would never recover.

The Huntsville community had taken the Von Braun Rocket Team to their heart from the earliest days. They were especially attached to von Braun and his family, who were conspicuous and active in community affairs. Their son had been born here. Their daughters had grown up and gone to school here. Saying goodbye to them was like saying goodbye to a family member. They met for the last time on the little square in front of the new courthouse. Citizens came in from all over town to show their affection and respect. Everyone was hopeful that his move to NASA headquarters would invigorate the space program. No one would have guessed that he was being lured into exile.

Dr. Eberhard Rees, von Braun’s deputy and close associate since their Peenemünde years, replaced him as MSFC director. Rees was a pleasant, white-haired, technically inclined manager with a reputation as a realist in contrast to the dreamer and visionary that von Braun had been. Rees called a meeting of the MSFC employees to reassure us that our future looked bright. In his remarks, he told us that he was not worried about losing von Braun’s technical ability, but as a salesman and promoter of space projects, he never expected to see his like again. He was certainly right about his old comrade. MSFC had lost its charismatic leader, and NASA would soon lose the only man they had who could plan bold space adventures and sell them to the public.

The narrow escape just added drama to the Apollo missions, while it advanced the reputation of MSC within NASA and with the general public. MSC received a lot more credit for saving Apollo 13 than any blame for letting it happen in the first place. MSC had obviously become the rising star within NASA. By the time von Braun settled in at headquarter, MSC influence was strongly entrenched.

Von Braun was sequestered into a little office in NASA headquarters. When his friend and supporter Tomas Paine retired, he was left without any real authority or responsibility. His image and plans for space missions disappeared from the media for the first time since he had come to this country. In July 1972, after only a couple of years at headquarters, he resigned from NASA and went to work in private industry. He was never on the world stage or in the national spotlight again. On June 15, 1977, he died quietly of cancer in Alexandria, VA at age 65. Whatever feelings of disappointment, bitterness, or betrayal that he may have felt in his last years were never made public.

The citizens of Huntsville hardly noted the passing of their most famous citizen. He had just disappeared from their lives and they had no idea about his last few years. The city had adopted many of his proposals, such as a beautification board for reclaiming the heart of the old city. Big Spring Park was developed and decorated with a bright red bridge and cherry trees around the lake. The new Civics Center next to the lake was named the von Braun Center in his honor. His suggestion for a Space and Rocket museum was adopted and became the biggest tourist attraction in the state. Hundreds of new industries moved to town during the Saturn program, and dozens of new business were spun off from national companies while they were here. Many high technology companies such as Brown Engineering, SCI, Intergraph, Adtran and Dynetics were incorporated in Huntsville. It was no longer a single-industry town, but was turning into the prosperous, shining city of technology that many had envisioned from its earliest days.

When the Apollo 17 astronauts returned to Earth in December 1972, the big adventure in space was over. The Saturn V was used again in May 1973 to orbit Skylab, but afterwards the Saturn hardware was hauled away to Space theme parks in Huntsville, Houston and KSC. Some of the Saturn/Apollo facilities at KSC were converted for use by the proposed Space Shuttle, but for the most part, everything was scrapped. The monolithic test stands and launch facilities that had been built with such pride and hope years before became derelicts that began to rust and erode away.

In 1973, soon after LBJ died, MSC’s name was changed to the Johnson Space Center (JSC). JSC was now a stronger force than ever within NASA with von Braun gone and MSFC weakened. NASA plans for building a base on the moon or making a trip to Mars was discussed, but they went nowhere. With no one of his stature left to sell the public, and with the Russian threat behind us, Congress was not in a mood to fund more space adventures. The best promoter the agency ever had had been driven into retirement. NASA lowered their sights and began to lobby for whatever they thought they could get. They spoke glowingly of a reusable Space Shuttle, making it sound like a great leap forward not the step down that many knew it to be. NASA carefully avoided any side by side pictures or models of the Shuttle and Saturn vehicles. They sidestepped any discussion of vastly diminished payload capacity by promising the Shuttle would make up for this deficiency with quick, safe and cheap access to orbit. Time has shown that this hype never became a reality. But it was a time for lies and deception at all levels of government—the Watergate hearings were dominating the news.

In this era of tight budgets and an apathetic public, NASA centers were fighting for every bit of the NASA budget that they could get. Of course, JSC was still strongly embedded into NASA headquarters and were siphoning off the lion’s share of the budget, but they probably decided they could do even better. The buzzards were circling again. The circling headed south to Huntsville, Alabama. One day, JSC got the call they had been waiting for, "Houston, the buzzard has landed."

Rocco Petrone came to Huntsville and took over as center director on January 26, 1973. He was the 3^rd MSFC director and the first that had not been part of the original Rocket Team. Rocco had spent much of his career at KSC and had established his reputation as a ruthless in-fighter as he worked his way up to NASA headquarters. He did not waste any time in letting MSFC employees know where they stood with him. He took every opportunity that he could to belittle, demean, and humiliate everyone from working level engineers to the highest levels of management. During a NASA-wide reduction in force, the German Rocket Team members were targeted for removal. They were forced out of their management positions at all levels on short notice. Most retired from MSFC in a matter of weeks after Rocco's purge got underway.

Some of the Germans may have been past their prime or more technical than managerial, but as a group they were competent, effective and respected by their employees. They made things happen with a phone call rather than sitting in a meeting all day. Ripping this organization apart was not in the interest of MSFC, NASA or the American space program. It only served the interests of those who were motivated by personal ambition, jealousy or vengeance against the Germans. When the German managers were thrown out, the unique communication chain between management and engineering was broken. Engineering rapidly lost control to the project managers, accountants and administrators. The engineering and technical culture that once set the goals and policy at the center went into a decline from which it never recovered.

For the most part, the Germans left quietly and retired to their homes in Huntsville, but even there they were not allowed to live in peace. Some were soon the target of investigation and harassment by the OSI (Office of Special Investigations) of the Justice Department. All of the Paperclip team had been thoroughly investigated by the army before they were brought to this country and afterwards by many agencies such as the FBI and CIA. Nothing was ever uncovered that would prevent them from becoming an American citizen or serving in the most sensitive positions. Once they had been used and discarded, their enemies turned on them using innuendo and false accusations.

The purge of the Germans continued in many petty acts, after they were thrown out of MSFC. For instance, almost all references to the German contribution to the American Space program were removed from the Space and Rocket Center that they had initiated. At one time, blank spaces existed on the walls where pictures and displays of von Braun and his German team had once hung. Eventually the political climate changed and the story of the Von Braun Rocket Team was restored to the exhibits. However, the Rocket Center gradually became more of a theme park and space camp for children than a monument to the space age.

Rocco Petrone left MSFC in 1974 and moved back to Washington, D.C. to become a NASA Associate Administrator. The next year, he retired from NASA and became the president of the National Center for Resource Recovery. It was never clear why he left so suddenly, or became interested in a career in garbage recovery. The bitter joke at MSFC was that NASA headquarters didn’t want him around to reorganize it, like he had reorganized MSFC.

The changes at MSFC were carried out so quietly that few in the community realized anything had happened. Huntsville’s destiny was no longer dependent on the Germans or so tied to the space industry. The new city continued to expand out in every direction from what had once been the old town. A new industrial park had been added and large industries settled around the airport. Yet, things were pretty much as they had always been around the Courthouse Square, at Five-Points and in the Twickenham District. Dogwoods and azaleas brightened the springtime and Maple Hill Cemetery was draped in yellow and orange glory during the fall. People kept their small-town neighborliness. Children still fed the ducks and goldfish at Big Spring Park. The city had been the clear winner in a struggle where so many of its champions had gone down to defeat. Only the old timers remembered the desperate struggle by the Army, or ever wondered what had happened to the Germans.