Trevor Gardner, Special Assistant to the Secretary of the Air Force for Research and Development, held a meeting in Washington. Included were representatives of the Air Research and Development Command (ARDC). Headquarters USAF, certain former members of the von Neumann Committee, and concerned contractor personnel. Among the problems discussed was the manner of meshing the scientific and technical operations in ballistic missile development with the prime contractor who would actually build the missiles. Finally it was agreed that the scientific-technical group recommended by the Strategic Missiles Evaluation Committee would be placed under an industrial contractor or university and would be balanced by an Air Force organization set up to supervise the whole show.

Air Force headquarters affirmed its strong support to demonstrate at the earliest possible date a capability to launch a satellite and to follow as soon thereafter as practicable with a moon impact. "Until such time as the Department of Defense approved early satellite launchings in support of 117L, and launch of a moon impact payload, the research command was directed to "take all actions necessary to be in position to accomplish both projects at the earliest time feasible." The command was further advised to design the first satellite as simply as possible and consider it a "warm up for subsequent more sophisticated vehicles. " Simplicity and an early launch date were considered more important than demonstrating a capability to recover payloads or otherwise demonstrate an advanced state of competence.. (Msg, AFCVC 56978, Hq USAF to ARDC, 26 Feb 58.)

The Air Force MIDAS I satellite was launched from Cape Canaveral in the first successful launch of the Atlas D/Agena A booster-upper stage combination. MIDAS I, however, failed to achieve orbit because an accident at the Atlas-Agena staging damaged the Agena. The entire vehicle reentered and burned up about 2,500 miles downrange. Missile Defense Alarm System.

The Lockheed-California Company released details of its recommendations to MSC on a scientific space station program. The study concluded that a manned station with a crew of 24 could be orbiting the Earth in 1968. Total cost of the program including logistics spacecraft and ground support was estimated at $2.6 billion for five years' operation. Lockheed's study recommended the use of a Saturn V to launch the unmanned laboratory into orbit and then launching a manned logistics vehicle to rendezvous and dock at the station.

The cosmonauts meet with engineers at TsNII-30 in Noginsk to review plans for docking trainers for the new Soyuz spacecraft. The trainers were supposed to be completed by now, but they are being held up for television and optical equipment to be delivered from Leningrad and Sverdlovsk. The mock-up of the 7K manned spacecraft trainer is immobile; it can only be turned around its centre of mass. The 1/30 scale of the 9K and 11K propulsion spacecraft with which the 7K will dock are free to rotate in all 3 axes. The cosmonauts in the 7K mock-up will see the 9K or 11K via the television screen aboard the spacecraft or in the Soyuz spacecraft in what the engineers promise will be a life-like appearance. They will practice approach and docking from a simulated distance of 300 m at a typical approach rate of 2 m/s. At the scale of the installation, this will equate to 10 cm/s. After the trainer review General Ioffe briefed the cosmonauts on plans for an electronic digital computer, with a mass of 40 kg, which was being developed for use in spacecraft navigation. Kamanin sees that very close collaboration will be needed between TsNII-30, TsPK, and GKNII VVS to complete trainer development on an accelerated schedule.

Apollo-Saturn 201 was launched from Cape Kennedy, with liftoff of an Apollo Block I spacecraft (CSM 009) on a Saturn IB launch vehicle at 11:12:01 EST. Launched from Launch Complex 34, the unmanned suborbital mission was the first flight test of the Saturn IB and an Apollo spacecraft. Total launch weight was 22,000 kilograms.

Spacecraft communications blackout lasted 1 minute 22 seconds. Reentry was initiated with a space-fixed velocity of 29,000 kilometers per hour. CM structure and heatshields performed adequately. The CM was recovered by the USS Boxer from the Atlantic about 72 kilometers uprange from the planned landing point. (8.18 S x 11.15 W).

The Ministry of Defence and VVS approve the draft DOS resolution. Kamanin has fought against it. He would prefer to develop a single reliable Soyuz spacecraft model by building and flying ten more (there are only four left of the original production lot in assembly). Instead the space leadership keep dreaming up new projects. In Kamanin's view, the DOS and its new Soyuz ferry design join Almaz, Soyuz VI, and the L3 as 'paper spacecraft'. Mishin still thinks he will 'teach the N1 to fly' and complete the L3, but Kamanin thinks the chances of this are nil. There is no coherent plan for Soviet spaceflight.

Second space test of the LK moon lander test using the T2K version. Followed the same programme as Cosmos 379.
Maneuver Summary:
189km X 252km orbit to 186km X 1189km orbit. Delta V: 251 m/s
186km X 1189km orbit to 200km X 10905km orbit. Delta V: 1320 m/s
Total Delta V: 2832 m/s.
Officially: Investigation of the upper atmosphere and outer space.

TV, telephone. Spacecraft engaged in practical applications and uses of space technology such as weather or communication (US Cat C). Positioned in geosynchronous orbit at 99 deg W in 1982-1991 As of 2 September 2001 located at 83.31 deg W drifting at 1.825 deg W per day. As of 2007 Mar 8 located at 112.98W drifting at 1.830W degrees per day.

Replaced Molniya 1-47. Uncertain if Molniya-1T model was Molniya-1 or Molniya-1T. Operation of the long-range telephone and telegraph radio communications system in the USSR; transmission of USSR Central Television programmes to stations in the Orbita network.

Stationed at 83 deg W. Spacecraft engaged in practical applications and uses of space technology such as weather or communication (US Cat C). Positioned in geosynchronous orbit at 75 deg W in 1987-1988; 108 deg W in-98 deg W in 1989-1992; 111 deg W in 1992; 112 deg W in 1993-1994; 135 deg W in 1995; 98 deg W in 1996-1998 As of 5 September 2001 located at 179.83 deg E drifting at 0.023 deg W per day. As of 2007 Mar 9 located at 176.12W drifting at 0.061W degrees per day.

Stationed at 162 deg E. Domestic communications. Launching organization Arianespace. Launch time 2358 GMT. Positioned in geosynchronous orbit at 162 deg E in 1992-1999 As of 4 September 2001 located at 19.90 deg W drifting at 4.382 deg W per day. As of 2007 Mar 9 located at 164.51E drifting at 4.378W degrees per day.

Stationed at 31 deg E. Positioned in geosynchronous orbit at 31 deg E in 1992-1997; 55 deg E in 1998-1999 As of 5 September 2001 located at 55.07 deg E drifting at 0.005 deg E per day. As of 2007 Mar 9 located at 172.70E drifting at 5.710W degrees per day.

SNOE, the Student Nitric Oxide Explorer. Small satellite built by the University of Colorado to measure the Nitric Oxide density as a function of altitude. First satellite in the STEDI (Student Explorer Demonstration Initiative) program. Air dropped in Point Arguello WADZ.

The Arab League satellite had 20 Ku-band transponders and was to be stationed at 26 degrees East. Dry mass was 1200 kg. Positioned in geosynchronous orbit at 26 deg E in 1999. As of 29 August 2001 located at 25.93 deg E drifting at 0.007 deg E per day. As of 2007 Mar 9 located at 25.89E drifting at 0.003E degrees per day.

Skynet 4E was a SHF/UHF military communications satellite for the UK Ministry of Defense. Dry mass was 759 kg; it used a Thiokol Star 30 solid apogee motor. Stationed at 53 deg E. Positioned in geosynchronous orbit at 53 deg E in 1999. As of 5 September 2001 located at 52.91 deg E drifting at 0.000 deg W per day. As of 2007 Mar 11 located at 53.02E drifting at 0.005E degrees per day.

ISS Servicing flight. Launch delayed from February10/20. Progress M-44 was a Russian, automatic cargo carrier that carried 2.5 tonnes of food, water, fuel, oxygen, and equipment to the International Space Station. In preparation for the docking, the ISS crew repositioned the Soyuz TM-31 escape craft from its port on Zvezda to a port on the Zarya module. Progress M-44 docked with the -Y port on Zvezda at 09:47 UT on 28 February. It undocked from Zvezda's aft port on April 16 at 0848 GMT and was deorbited at 1323 GMT over the Pacific Ocean.

The residents of the International Space Station today conducted the first ever two-man spacewalk without a crewmember inside, but the planned five and a half hour-spacewalk to support technology experiments and prepare for a future visit from a cargo vehicle was cut short by a cooling system problem with one of the two crewmembers' Russian Orlan suits. Additional Details: here....

Return to flight after earlier failure; first commercial mission for H-2A. Delayed from August 2003, January 2004, and February 24, 2005. The dual-purpose satellite was to provide weather data for the Japanese Meteorological Agency (as with others in the Himawari-GMS series), and air traffic control support (airplane-ATC voice/data links, GPS augmentation and airplane position tracking) for the Japanese Civil Aviation Bureau. As of 2007 Mar 11 located at 140.26E drifting at 0.000E degrees per day.