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DEPARTMENT OF THE AIR FORCE 

WASHINGTON 20330 

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A*e" 

JAMES FERGUSON 

General, USAF 

Director, MOL Program 

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SUBJECT: Manned Orbiting Laboratory Monthly Status Report ENEE% 

The attached Status Report on the Manned Orbiting Laboratory 

(MOL) Program covers activities through October 31, 1967 and is 

submitted in accordance with the October 16, 1967 memorandum from 

the Office of the Secretary. 

I NOV 1961 

MEMORANDUM FOR THE SECRETARY OF THE AIR FORCE 

1 Atch

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DORIAN 

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I. PROBLEM 

FY 1968 Funds 

The MOL Program Review Council met on October 27 for an 

exhaustive review of FY 68/69 program financial status and outlook. 

The principal purpose of the financial review was to examine the 

impact of the firm FY 68 NOA of $430 million. 

In summary form, the FY 68 fiscal problem was defined as 

follows: Notwithstanding the 13-week schedule slip incorporated 

into the program during the Systems Office re-scheduling meetings 

of October 19 and 20 with the contractors, the projected end FY 68 

financial position will result in certain of the MOL contractors 

being in an unacceptably exposed financial position if work is 

continued at a rate commensurate with a 13 week slip. 

The Council concluded that it is now necessary to adjust 

program schedules and work so as to reduce or entirely eliminate 

projected contractor risk. The Systems Office will develop an 

appropriately adjusted schedule, which will then be taken as a 

departure point for FY 69, 70, 71 funding projections. The revised 

program is expected to be ready for review by mid-November. 

II. CHANGE PAST MONTH 

A. MOL Schedule Adjustment 

Air Force and contractor MOL management met at the McDonnellDouglas Space Center, Huntington Beach California, on October 19 and 20 

to revise the MOL Master Integrated Schedule and related Hardware 

Exchange Lists to reflect a slip of 13 weeks in MOL launch dates. The 

revised schedule was formally accepted by all parties on. October 20. 

However, in view of the FY 68 funding problems still outstanding in 

spite of this adjustment, additional schedule revision will undoubtedly 

be required. 

B. DDMS Support to MOL 

Generals Stewart and Bleymaier met with the DoD Manager for 

Manned Space Flight Support Operations, Major General V. G. Huston, 

on October 26 for discussions of the DDMS role in MOL recovery 

operations. It was agreed that the DoD Manager will participate. 

The nature and extent of this participation were generally defined. 

A memorandum formalizing these agreements will be executed. 

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III. CURRENT STATUS 

A. Funds 

Additional FY 1968 MOL funds in the amount of $130 million 

were released by DoD during October. This release brings cumulative 

FY 1968 funding to $250 million against an approved program of $430 

million. The Systems Office has been provided a total of $240 million 

from the available funds, and the remaining $10 million is retained 

by Director, MOL. Current funding is expected to meet program 

requirements through December 1967. 

B. Congressional 

On October 25 the Program Office provided information 

through SAF-LL to Representative Karth's office on the award of the 

MOL Feeding System contract to Whirlpool. The inquiry concerned 

Pillsbury's unsuccessful proposal for this contract. 

C. Cost/Schedule Planning and Control System 

The Air Force team appointed to review and validate the 

Douglas Cost/Schedule Planning and Control System (C/SPCS) held its 

initial meetings with Douglas on October 5. The contractor gave the 

Air Force members an overview of the system it has established in 

compliance with the MOL contract C/SPCS specification. The team 

chairman, in turn, briefed the contractor on the procedures which will 

be used in the evaluation. 

On October 30 the team reconvened at Douglas to start the 

actual validation. During the validation the team will determine 

whether the contractor system complies with the contract specification. 

A secondary objective of the team will be to establish whether the Douglas 

system would comply with the standard C/SPCS specification as prescribed 

by AFSC. The validation phase is anticipated to take two to three 

weeks and will be followed by a two week period during which the team 

will document and prepare their report. 

IV. FORECAST FOR FUTURE 

A. Schedule Adjustment 

A revised MOL Engineering Development Phase schedule consistent 

with available FY 68 and projected FY 69 funds will be developed by the 

Systems Office as soon as practicable. Target date for Washington-area 

review of the revised program is November 17. 

DORIAN 

HEMAN 

4Yd rLihtl 

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B. Air Council Briefing 

General Stewart will explore the possibility of briefing 

the Air Council on MOL in the near future. The purpose of this 

briefing would be to prepare Council members for the heavy demands 

that MOL will make on the FY 69 and FY 70 RDT&E appropriations, and 

to solicit Council support for $600-plus million dollar MOL budgets 

for these two years. 

C. MOL Program Review Council Meeting 

The Program Review Council will meet in the Pentagon, 

Room 5D-227, at 10:30 A. M. November 17 to review the actions proposed 

by General Bleymaier to adjust the Program to FY 68 and FY 69 funding 

constraints. 

V. DUE DATE FOR NEXT PROGRESS REPORT 

The next monthly MOL Program Progress Report will be submitted 

December 7, 1967. 

DORIAN 

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