Project Mercury Test Flights: Little Joe 5A

Video from the channel The Technicolor Whiscash about Little Joe 5A, linked on its Above Ten Thousand entry. Duration: 2:28. Language: English. Video type: Archive footage.

NASA footage of the Little Joe 5A flight, with a later commentary in English. It shows the rocket's liftoff with a production Mercury capsule, whose mission was to test the escape system under the maximum dynamic pressure conditions expected for an orbital launch with an Atlas.

The launch took place on March 18, 1961, from Wallops Island, about 11 minutes before noon. At 20 seconds, 14 earlier than planned, the escape motor fired without the capsule separating.

The test repeated that of Little Joe 5, which had failed in 1960 due to the same premature ignition. The analysis attributed both failures to structural deformations near the retaining rings. The capsule splashed down 18 miles from the launch site, and the next attempt was Little Joe 5B.