NASA hangar opens in Yuma with dedication ceremony

Astronaut Scott Altman has something very personal at stake with the work NASA will be doing out of the Pappy Boyington Hangar at the Yuma County International Airport.

Speaking at the dedication ceremony for the hangar Monday, Altman said that while he appreciates the value of NASA's presence to the local economy and the important work the agency does for space travel, as an astronaut he's counting on the work taking place here to get him and other space travelers back home.

"I want the confidence in this work that I will be able to get back and be able to tell all those wonderful stories," said Altman, a veteran of four space shuttle missions. "Thanks for all the work to make this happen."

The newly completed defense contractor's hangar was leased in early October for use by NASA and Jacobs Technology, an engineering consulting firm for NASA. Both will have teams working out of the hangar when they travel from Houston Space Center several times a year as part of the mission to develop the parachute assembly system for the new Orion space capsule.

The hangar will provide a permanent base for the agency as it tests the parachute system at Yuma Proving Ground.

"This facility will play a critical role," said Ron Miller, senior vice president and general manager of Jacobs Technology. "We all hold our breath until the astronauts are back and safely out of the capsule."

He said the hangar will be used by the team from Houston as they get ready for an air drop test at YPG. After the test, they will clean up and head back to Houston to prepare for the next test.

The test involves dropping a large and heavy payload with three parachutes and test equipment from a C-17 that will loaded out of the hangar, then flown over YPG for the actual test.

The tests have been going on for several years at YPG, where the crew would work out of what "small niche" that could be found for them, said Grant Ware, who is in charge of aviation and air delivery testing at YPG.

"This is a good thing for us," he said of the new hangar. "When NASA comes to Yuma we don't have a place for them. With this facility they can build up their testing system, then pick up and drop over YPG."

Ware noted that YPG is one of the few places in the world suitable for the testing, with its restricted air space to 80,000 feet.

Miller said the next test likely will take place in mid-December. "We're already here working on it."

To date, the system has been tested 15 times with another 20 or so tests planned, said Jasen Raboin, NASA manager for the project. "It's a long process. We test all the possible scenarios. These guys' lives are in our hands."

He said the first Orion flight is expected to take place in late 2015.

Warm welcomes were issued by Mayor Larry Nelson and Greg Ferguson, chairman of the Yuma County Board of Supervisors.

"What a great opportunity," said Nelson. "Whoever would have thought we would see NASA here."

He complimented the Airport Authority, the governing board for Yuma International Airport, for the foresight to have the hangar built for such economic development opportunities.

Col. Mark A. Werth, commanding officer of Marine Corps Air Station Yuma, said it was fitting that the hangar was named in honor of Greg "Pappy" Boyington, a World War II aviation hero and commander of the famed Black Sheep Squadron that still is based at MCAS Yuma.

Werth, who at one time served with the Black Sheep of VMA-214, noted that the squadron today is deployed to Afghanistan "fighting for us."

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Joyce Lobeck can be reached at jlobeck@yumasun.com or 539-6853.