Last months event was a spectacular meeting as Than and Sherrie Naegle made a presentation of the Cotton Mission of Southern Utah. The history of cotton was talked about, and how China and India did so well with it several thousand years ago, and that when the mills were developed in Britain, they could make the fabric so easily it became cost prohibitive for China and India to compete.
We learned that the invention of the Cotton gin saved the South, and as the Saints came to Utah they recognized the need to have cotton themselves, and so the Cotton Mission was established. We learned of the terrible struggle to survive here in such hostile wilderness, but because of the faith, courage and dedication of the pioneers to this area, they not only survived, but began to thrive here. With all of the struggles of growing cotton, in the end, it was one of the means that helped our forefathers to make it through. Thank you Than and Sherrie for an entertaining and educational evening. And also a great thanks to the wonderful cooks who provided the casseroles, salads, desserts and etc. They were marvelous. We had a crowd of 68 in attendance, with several visitors there. 18 March 2009
Panel: Clayton Beatty-Field Operations, Kelly Spendlove-Construction, Data Reduction & Electronics, Del Mont Wallace-Photography, Antone Bringhurst-Data Reduction and ModeratorProblem: Jet aircraft were put into service soon after WWII. Escape from a disabled plane became a serious issue as the performance of aircraft increased. Between 1949 and 1956, there were 25 operational ejections at speeds above 500 knots (~575 mph). Eighty percent of these resulted in injury or death to the person ejected.
Mission: In the early 1950s the Air Force determined that it needed a facility to test and evaluate ejection systems of high speed aircraft. Air Force test tracks were in existence at Edwards Air Force Base in California and Holloman Air Development Center in New Mexico, but they were on the desert floors and did not provide the capability to observe and study the escape process from beginning to end. The Air Force decided that it needed a test track that would allow for an object to be ejected near the edge of a cliff. The site requirements were for a relatively flat surface 2 ½ miles long ending at the edge of a precipice with a drop of at least 1,000 ft. Prospective sites in many regions of the United States were examined. Lower Smiths Mesa, later renamed Hurricane Mesa, was the site chosen.
Project SMART: In early 1953 Coleman Engineering Co. of Los Angeles, along with 10 or 12 other engineering firms, were asked to develop a proposal for the preliminary design of a test facility for aircraft ejection systems. Coleman’s design was chosen, and in June of 1954 it was awarded the contract to design and build the test facility. The name given the project was “Supersonic Military Air Research Track”. It was referred to as “Project SMART”. The contract called for the facility to be completed within 18 months, i.e. by November of 1954. The track design was to accommodate vehicle velocities of up to mach 2, which is approximately 1,800 mph.
Construction: Hurricane Mesa sits 1,500 feet above its valley floor. In 1954 there were no roads to the top of the Mesa, it had no electrical power, and its water supply was judged to be inadequate. Early access was via Upper Smiths Mesa. The following construction components had to be completed within the 18 month period: construction of a road, delivery of electrical power, delivery of water from the Virgin River 1,800 feet below, construction of a 12,000 foot long concrete test track, anchored to bed rock, continously welded steel tracks installed and aligned to tolerances of .005 of an inch, construction of a blockhouse control center, camera towers built, storage facilities for rockets completed, electronic telemetry facilities developed, shop and administrative facilities built, security fence completed, etc.. All of these construction components were completed in 13 months! The first track test firing occurred on 8 July 1955.
Facts of the Facility during the Air Force Era: A total of 334 tests were conducted between July of 1955 and December of 1961. During the construction phase as many as 200 workers were employed. During the operational phase the maximum workforce was approximately 100. Workers during the operational phase were required to have a “secret” security clearance. The workforce was organized into the following groups: Base operations, Field Operations, Electronics, Photography, Data Reduction, Security, and Administration.
Possible Topics for Panel Discussion:
Photographic operations-Del Mont;
Field operations-Clayton;
Electronics operations-Kelly, Wayne;
Data Reduction operations-Kelly, Antone;
Types of rocket engines;
Sled breaking systems and associated challenges;
Speed measuring system;
We will be meeting at the American Legion Hall at 6:30. The dinner will be pot-luck. We look forward to seeing you all there.
TREK: March 28th to the Hurricane Mesa. We will leave the Hurricane area around 2:00 p.m. Larry Hutching will be our leader, and Chris Woodbury will be our guide. More on the trek will be announced at the 18th pot-luck dinner.
Newest Member: Hi, my name is Martin Beyler and I grew up in a small agricultural southern Idaho town called Malta. There I attained the rank of Eagle Scout, and after graduating from high school went on an LDS mission to Australia. I then went to college graduating from Ricks College and Utah State University (two degrees there). It was there I met my sweetheart Carie Sue, from Honeyville, Utah, and we were married in the Logan Temple. We have five lovely children Mandie Lynn, Cort Nelson, Alyssa Marie, Jarom Carl, & Sarah Vee. We like hiking, camping, most sports, and art. I work for Accurate Hearing Clinics in St. George where I enjoy helping people hear better. We are excited to be down in the warmer part Utah. I'm happy to be an SUP member, and to get to know you.
Introducing something new to our chapter! Our very own website. It is hoped that bringing this modern item to our chapter will increase communication between the board and our members. We will continue to mail monthly newsletters to those who do not have the internet in their homes. However, for those who are willing to use this medium, it could save the SUP hundreds of dollars each year. The website is still being worked on, but is on line, and you can access it at: www.hvsup.org. Take a look at it and let us know what you think! The Newsletter will be available to each of our members through this means, as well as “the Trail Marker” from our National headquarters. We will have histories, an archive of past newsletters, records of our accomplishments, upcoming events, and of new monuments that are being considered. We will still have our monthly calls to remind you of the current month’s event, but hope you will become computer minded enough to look at the site often. This site will be linked to the Cotton Mission Chapter, and to National so you can easily locate their sites.As you can see, we are trying to get our calendar completed so you can plan for the whole year. Please look at these dates and put them on your calendar. There are some months that still have to have the date scheduled. We will get these dates to you as soon as possible. We look forward to having a fantastic year.
