Comment by kens
Author here for your Apollo questions :-)
Author here for your Apollo questions :-)
>The Command Module for Apollo used a completely different FDAI (flight director-attitude indicator) that was built by Honeywell.
That's surprising. Was there any requirement that necessitated them to be different parts, or it's just because different suppliers were chosen by Grumman/North American?
It's probably a combination of different suppliers being chosen, and everyone wanted a piece of the pie. But it's annoying when I figure out how something works in the Lunar Module and then discover that the Command Module is completely different. Not to mention that the Saturn V is a whole different world.
Yes, in the movie, Lovell says "What's the frappin' attitude?" as the 8-ball rolls out of control. The actual Apollo 13 transcript has nothing like that, interestingly enough.
Links: https://archive.org/details/apollo1319959231994/page/n92/mod... https://www.nasa.gov/wp-content/uploads/static/history/alsj/...
Great article. I'd never thought about a spacecraft ADI having a third axis. Sadly, a nitpick - Bill Lear's F-5 autopilot was not, as far as I can tell, in any way connected to the Northrop F-5 fighter jet.