Cape Canaveral Launch Complex 39 (Apollo)

LC-39 LUT Launch Umbilical Tower

Mission Profile

Kennedy Space Center Launch Complex 39 with its Launch Umbilical Tower (LUT) served as the primary Saturn V launch facility during the Apollo program, supporting all 13 Saturn V missions between 1967 and 1973 including all crewed lunar expeditions. The massive 120-meter steel umbilical tower provided nine swing arms that connected propellant, electrical, communications, and crew access systems to the Saturn V until moments before launch, with all arms retracting in the final seconds of the countdown. Pads 39A and 39B were built identically to allow flexibility in scheduling, with the LUTs designed to move between pads on the mobile launcher platform carried by NASA's crawler-transporters. The LC-39 infrastructure represented the largest launch facility ever constructed at the time, purpose-built for the requirements of reaching the Moon.