AS-201

AS-201
Launch of AS-201, the first flight of the Apollo spacecraft and Saturn IB launch vehicle
Mission typeSuborbital test flight
OperatorNASA
Mission duration37 minutes, 19.7 seconds
Range8,477 kilometers (4,577 nautical miles)
Apogee492.1 kilometers (265.7 nautical miles)
Spacecraft properties
SpacecraftApollo CSM-009
ManufacturerNorth American Aviation
Launch mass15,294 kilograms (33,718 lb)
Start of mission
Launch dateFebruary 26, 1966, 16:12:01 (1966-02-26UTC16:12:01Z) UTC
RocketSaturn IB SA-201
Launch siteCape Kennedy LC-34
End of mission
Recovered byUSS Boxer
Landing dateFebruary 26, 1966, 16:49:21 (1966-02-26UTC16:49:22Z) UTC
Landing siteSouth Atlantic Ocean
8°56′S 10°43′W / 8.933°S 10.717°W / -8.933; -10.717 (AS-201 splashdown)
← AS-105
AS-203 →

AS-201 (Also known as SA-201, Apollo 1-A, or Apollo 1 prior to the 1967 pad fire), flown February 26, 1966, was the first uncrewed test flight of an entire production Block I Apollo command and service module and the Saturn IB launch vehicle. The spacecraft consisted of the second Block I command module and the first Block I service module. The suborbital flight was a partially successful demonstration of the service propulsion system and the reaction control systems of both modules, and successfully demonstrated the capability of the command module's heat shield to survive re-entry from low Earth orbit.