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AN EXPLANATION OF NUMBER SIX. WHAT I MEANT IS THAT IF THEY WERE WILLING TO PUT THREE GUYS IN UNTRIED MACHINERY WITH A BAD HISTORY AND THEY WERE CONFIDENT IT WOULD FLY AND NOT BLOW UP THAT THEY WOULD NOT BE HIDING MILES AWAY. BACK IN THE EARLY DAYS OF THE AIR FORCE THEY HAD A POLICY THAT IF YOU BUILT AND DESIGNED SOMETHING YOU WOULD BE THE FIRST TO TEST IT NO MATTER HOW DANGEROUS. THEY DID NOT DO THAT.
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A few problems with this:
-The Saturn V had
never had any serious problems resulting in abort/destruct, from the first (unmanned) flight, to the last flight, carrying Skylab to orbit (unless you say Skylab was fake.)
-It was procedure to launch a rocket for the first time unmanned, not because they were "cowards", but because they were smart. The Saturn V was a complex machine, and they were not going to take an unnecessary risk, especially when they weren't planning to put men into orbit at the time. The initial flights were to test the vehicle, and determine if it was safe to fly. As it turned out, it was.
-You
never ever ever ever EVER put personnel at undue risk. It strikes as idiocy and can get people killed. As someone mentioned before, the sound produced by the Saturn V was enough to kill if one were to stand at a close proximity, to say nothing of the heat and pressure from liftoff, potentially dangerous exhaust plumes, and, of course, the risk of explosion. Keep in mind, however, that the astronauts riding the thing were in a pressurized spacecraft, and not subject to the intense noise.
Also, what does the "early days of the Air Force" have to do with this? This was NASA, not the infant USAF. I do, however, question the validity of your statement regarding USAF policy.
-Adam