West Coast Field Office Personel at Perkin-Elmer

This old photo was taken in the blockhouse at Vandenberg Air Force Base on 18 April 1986, the day the 20th and last Hexagon satellite was launched. Unfortunately it exploded about 1000 feet above the pad. Some of the Perkin-Elmer WCFO (West Coast Field Office) crew were trapped in the blockhouse for several hours before being allowed to leave. They were subjected to the extreme noise and shaking of the ground during the explosion and subsequent damage to the area outside the blockhouse.

left to right. Lyle Lindasy, Chuck Bruener, John Knauer, Roy Odom, Don Armstrong, Ed Woyshner, Capt. Steve Gorley (customer), and Ken Dudschus. In the background on the wall are things from previous missions such as cut ties, a tradition after each successful launch.

Don Armstrong provided this photo.

Perkin-Elmer West Coast Field Office group that searched the Vandenberg AFB area near the launch pad for several days for leftover film after the rocket explosion in 1986. They recovered much debris ending up with numerous bags of film and other items.

Left to right:

Bill McCafferty, Jim Dimas, Ken Dudchus, George Manolis, Frank Harrigan, John Thomson, Jim Manis, Don Armstrong, John Knauer.

Their shirts say “Slick Bushwackers.”

Here is another photo of some of the west coast staff in front of the memento wall with souvenir ties cut from participants in past launches. Sorry for those I could not identify.