Guenter wendt biography examples

In NASA documentary films, Wendt appears as the bespectacled, thin man in a bow-tie and white cap and coat, usually standing near the hatch, clipboard in hand; or bending over seated crew members, pulling their safety harnesses snug for launch. He also completed a four-year apprenticeship during the war learning aircraft building. After the Allied victorythere were few job opportunities for engineers in Germany under the Occupationso Wendt decided to emigrate to the United States in and joined his divorced father in St.

Louis, Missouri. Defense contractor McDonnell Aircraft was interested in employing Wendt as an engineer, but could not hire a German citizen since the company was working on U. Navy contracts. Wendt found a job as a truck mechanic though he had never worked on trucks and within one year became shop supervisor. He obtained his U. As a McDonnell engineer, Wendt supervised spacecraft launch pad preparations at Cape Canaveral during the Mercury and Gemini crewed space programs beginning with the flight of Ham the chimpanzee in He came to be regarded as a welcomed good luck figure to the astronauts; always the last reassuring Earth-bound face the crew members saw, kidding with them and wishing them a successful flight as he directed completion of the complex pad close-out procedures just prior to launch.

Wendt's was the final word for the launch tower white room team responsible for loading and securing the crewmen, ensuring that spacecraft instrumentation, switches and controls were correct for launch, and securing the hatch. Nobody touched anything without his permission.

Guenter wendt biography examples

There is no reason to say I am narrow-minded. Just do it my way and you will have no problem at all. Once a stubborn engineer intended to personally make a spacecraft change, with or without Wendt's permission. Wendt called security to have him removed. The [security] guy comes up on the elevator and he says [to the engineer], 'You like me to put handcuffs on you, or are you going to go by yourself?

Maybe this system is wrong, but I have had pretty good success with it. If I don't do a good job, I get out. I can't compromise. An employee of McDonnell Aircraft and later North American Aviation, he was in charge of the spacecraft close-out crews at the launch pads for the entire Mercury and Gemini programs, and the manned phase of the Apollo program at the Kennedy Space Center.

His official title was Pad Leader. In NASA documentary films, Wendt appears as the bespectacled, thin man in a bow-tie and white cap and coat, usually standing near the hatch, clipboard in hand; or bending over seated crew members, pulling their safety harnesses snug for launch. We're doing our best to make sure our content is useful, accurate and safe.

If by any chance you spot an inappropriate comment while navigating through our website please use this form to let us know, and we'll take care of it shortly. All you have to do is agree with him. They must be completed on time. Do we have the right holders? Do we have the right fittings? Wendt was born and educated in Germany. He came to the United States in and became an American citizen in As a mechanical engineer for McDonnell Aircraft, he was given primary responsibility for spacecraft test, checkout, and launch operations for all Mercury and Gemini manned flights.