page_title: Pad abort test
section_title: Orion
hierarchical_section_title: Pad abort test / Orion
context_page_description: A pad abort test is a test of a launch escape system to determine how well the system could get the crew of a spacecraft to safety in an emergency on the launch pad.
context_section_description: The Orion pad abort test was started with the construction of the first Orion boilerplate. It is a basic mockup prototype to test the assembling sequences and launch procedures at NASA's Langley Research Center. Lockheed Martin Corp. was awarded the contract to build Orion on August 31, 2006. The first pad abort test trial of the escape tower system was successfully completed at New Mexico's White Sands Missile Range on May 6, 2010.
caption: Artist's concept of an Orion pad abort test.
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