Packed in a nylon cover, this is one of three flotation bags that were attached to the Apollo 10 Command Module. When an Apollo command module landed in the ocean, it could settle into one of two stable positions: nose up or nose down. Landing nose down left its recovery antennas underwater and increased the possibility that the spacecraft might fill with sea water. To turn the command module upright, three inflatable bags were installed in the Command Module's forward (nose) compartment. Astronauts could right the spacecraft by activating air compressors in the aft (blunt) end of the spacecraft. The compressors were connected to the bags with tubing.
This flotation bag was transferred from NASA in 1976.
Credit Line:
Transferred from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration
