Actually, it'll be interesting to see how Japanese anime progresses being influenced by German art, literature, etc rather than the American influence that OTL had during the post WW2 occupation. The darker fairy tales of Germany plus all the tales of castles, knights, etc, could be quite interesting to see how it works out.
Stupid Luck and Happenstance, Thread III
- Thread starter Peabody-Martini
- Start date
In an ironic cultural butterfly because the United States did not participate ITTL WW II, films from Hollywood would still have been shown in the Germany and Japan so films like westerns, musicals, crime drama, and probably the most popular of them all would have been from Disney and they would have been seen from the audience perspective as an escape from more of the heavy handed propaganda films being produced by their domestic film studios.
For Disney this means films like Bambi (1942) and Fantaisa (1940) are bigger overseas hits and of course the cartoon shorts with Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck are very popular.
Part 109, Chapter 1781
Chapter One Thousand Seven Hundred Eighty-One
30th January 1967
Washington D.C.
Nelson Rockefeller looked through his notes at the revised version of the public statement that he was about to give. A Nation might be united by loss or a triumph could open a preexisting wound. One could never tell. How would they react to a failed attempt at getting ahead of a rival and restoring their country to a position of international leadership?
Apollo IV had failed shortly after launch resulting in the whole thing being aborted. The Command Module had to be jettisoned and the rocket itself had been blown up by Mission Control. This had come at a time when many people throughout the country were questioning the priorities and mission of the Space Program, especially when it increasingly looked like the United States versus the rest of the World. It was inevitable that Congress was going to get into the act, but not too much though. No one facing reelection next year wanted to face the prospect of telling their constituents that any high paying aerospace jobs in their State might be going away because of cutbacks. Rockefeller figured that the Democratic Party would be carrying on about how they could have done it so much better and beaten the Germans, as if they hadn’t squandered sixteen years failing to do exactly that.
The news wasn’t entirely bad, the Launch Escape System had worked much to the surprise of many people who worked within NASA. The Navy was saying that Alan Shepard was furious after he, Michael Collins and Ed White had been fished out of the Atlantic Ocean. The Command Module of Apollo IV and its passengers were safely aboard the Aircraft Carrier USS Concord. President Rockefeller was seriously considering ordering the Concord to circle around in the Atlantic until Shepard had cooled down a bit and he most certainly didn’t want the Mission Commander to go anywhere near the Press. The trouble was that NASA had been pressed hard from every quarter to get Apollo IV to the Moon before the rainy season in Southern Vietnam had ended and the Taxidiotis Program resumed. Shepard was blaming that for the loss of the mission.
The result was a near calamity.
NASA had told Rockefeller that they intended to conduct a full investigation on exactly what had gone wrong and work on fixing it for next time. At the same time that he had spoken with NASA’s Director he had known that in only a few hours, four Astronauts; two Germans, a Russian and a Frenchman were going to land on the Moon if everything went well. Considering the obsessive testing that the Germans conducted on all their equipment, anything that might have gone wrong probably would have by now. He was not looking forward to the phone call he would need to make congratulating the Kaiser and Chancellor when that happened. Fortunately, neither of those two were the sort to gloat. However, the President of France, who Rockefeller was certain would probably call him, would probably take a great deal of joy in gloating.
In transit from Lunar Orbit
It was strange to see the Hansa I Command Module growing smaller with distance. Strapped into her seat aboard the Landing Module Baltic, Sigi just looked out the window and watched. She might be the Mission Commander, but for a little bit she was just a passenger as Erich piloted the Baltic. This was entirely his show and that was a bit of a relief for Sigi.
For every waking moment since Taxidiotis IV had lifted off, Sigi had felt the crushing responsibility for the Mission to go perfectly. From the various engine burns, to deploying and linking up with the LM Baltic, Sigi had been there running through the checklists in contact with Mission Control. While most of the processes were automated, the crew of the Hansa had still needed to be in position in case of a system failure. Over the previous two days, Erich had been in the Baltic practicing the procedures for the landing. The various probes that had landed on the Moon and Recon Module that Taxidiotis III had left in Lunar orbit had detected gravity anomalies. So, Erich had been told that he needed to be prepared for anything. Kat had once told her that part of being in Command was knowing when to let her people do their jobs without interference. This seemed like one of those times.
Sigi hadn’t had a chance to relax that entire time until they had sealed the hatches between the Hansa and Baltic. It had also occurred to her to wonder who had come up with those names. Supposedly they had been selected to be as inoffensive as possible after the capsule names during the Atgeir Program, Huginn, one of the ravens that the Norse God Odin used to watch the affairs of man. There were rumors about how many spy agencies throughout the world had tried to find out if there had been more to Huginn than just the name.
Minutes ticked by and Sigi just watched and listened to Erich talking to Mission Control as the descended towards the targeted landing site near the Rille called Vallis Schröteri or Schröter’s Valley. One of the stated scientific purpose of the Mission was to obtain samples from the region that was believed to have been formed ancient Lunar volcanism and related to the formation of the far larger Oceanus Procellarum just to the south.
Looking out the windows, Erich expertly guided the Baltic towards the landing zone that the orbital photography said was free of large debris. The sound of the engines could barely be heard, but the vibration could be felt through the floor. The Baltic lurched slightly as it came to rest on the spidery legs that folded out from it. The Baltic had landed.
30th January 1967
Washington D.C.
Nelson Rockefeller looked through his notes at the revised version of the public statement that he was about to give. A Nation might be united by loss or a triumph could open a preexisting wound. One could never tell. How would they react to a failed attempt at getting ahead of a rival and restoring their country to a position of international leadership?
Apollo IV had failed shortly after launch resulting in the whole thing being aborted. The Command Module had to be jettisoned and the rocket itself had been blown up by Mission Control. This had come at a time when many people throughout the country were questioning the priorities and mission of the Space Program, especially when it increasingly looked like the United States versus the rest of the World. It was inevitable that Congress was going to get into the act, but not too much though. No one facing reelection next year wanted to face the prospect of telling their constituents that any high paying aerospace jobs in their State might be going away because of cutbacks. Rockefeller figured that the Democratic Party would be carrying on about how they could have done it so much better and beaten the Germans, as if they hadn’t squandered sixteen years failing to do exactly that.
The news wasn’t entirely bad, the Launch Escape System had worked much to the surprise of many people who worked within NASA. The Navy was saying that Alan Shepard was furious after he, Michael Collins and Ed White had been fished out of the Atlantic Ocean. The Command Module of Apollo IV and its passengers were safely aboard the Aircraft Carrier USS Concord. President Rockefeller was seriously considering ordering the Concord to circle around in the Atlantic until Shepard had cooled down a bit and he most certainly didn’t want the Mission Commander to go anywhere near the Press. The trouble was that NASA had been pressed hard from every quarter to get Apollo IV to the Moon before the rainy season in Southern Vietnam had ended and the Taxidiotis Program resumed. Shepard was blaming that for the loss of the mission.
The result was a near calamity.
NASA had told Rockefeller that they intended to conduct a full investigation on exactly what had gone wrong and work on fixing it for next time. At the same time that he had spoken with NASA’s Director he had known that in only a few hours, four Astronauts; two Germans, a Russian and a Frenchman were going to land on the Moon if everything went well. Considering the obsessive testing that the Germans conducted on all their equipment, anything that might have gone wrong probably would have by now. He was not looking forward to the phone call he would need to make congratulating the Kaiser and Chancellor when that happened. Fortunately, neither of those two were the sort to gloat. However, the President of France, who Rockefeller was certain would probably call him, would probably take a great deal of joy in gloating.
In transit from Lunar Orbit
It was strange to see the Hansa I Command Module growing smaller with distance. Strapped into her seat aboard the Landing Module Baltic, Sigi just looked out the window and watched. She might be the Mission Commander, but for a little bit she was just a passenger as Erich piloted the Baltic. This was entirely his show and that was a bit of a relief for Sigi.
For every waking moment since Taxidiotis IV had lifted off, Sigi had felt the crushing responsibility for the Mission to go perfectly. From the various engine burns, to deploying and linking up with the LM Baltic, Sigi had been there running through the checklists in contact with Mission Control. While most of the processes were automated, the crew of the Hansa had still needed to be in position in case of a system failure. Over the previous two days, Erich had been in the Baltic practicing the procedures for the landing. The various probes that had landed on the Moon and Recon Module that Taxidiotis III had left in Lunar orbit had detected gravity anomalies. So, Erich had been told that he needed to be prepared for anything. Kat had once told her that part of being in Command was knowing when to let her people do their jobs without interference. This seemed like one of those times.
Sigi hadn’t had a chance to relax that entire time until they had sealed the hatches between the Hansa and Baltic. It had also occurred to her to wonder who had come up with those names. Supposedly they had been selected to be as inoffensive as possible after the capsule names during the Atgeir Program, Huginn, one of the ravens that the Norse God Odin used to watch the affairs of man. There were rumors about how many spy agencies throughout the world had tried to find out if there had been more to Huginn than just the name.
Minutes ticked by and Sigi just watched and listened to Erich talking to Mission Control as the descended towards the targeted landing site near the Rille called Vallis Schröteri or Schröter’s Valley. One of the stated scientific purpose of the Mission was to obtain samples from the region that was believed to have been formed ancient Lunar volcanism and related to the formation of the far larger Oceanus Procellarum just to the south.
Looking out the windows, Erich expertly guided the Baltic towards the landing zone that the orbital photography said was free of large debris. The sound of the engines could barely be heard, but the vibration could be felt through the floor. The Baltic lurched slightly as it came to rest on the spidery legs that folded out from it. The Baltic had landed.
Last edited:
I think it would be pretty easy to predict exactly how the press would react & they shape the reaction of the public... some of the time.
That is good news. The crew is pissed that they had to use it but the entire program will be relieved that it works. And saying that Sheppard is furious is probably a massive understatement. He may even have tried to put a fist through a steel bulkhead.
There's always one...
The loneliness of command. Get used to it Sigi.
They're probably STILL looking...
Or, alternatively, "GOOOOOAAAAAAALLLLLLL!!!!"
There is still plenty of times for things to go wrong and plenty of things to go wrong. They aren't even at the half way mark of the mission yet. That said, every now & then, even the Demon Murphy will allow every thing to go 100% perfectly well. Even in real life.
Its "Stupid Luck and Happenstance" the dice God will always side with Germany and her Allies. Don't forget that this timeline technology are more advanced than OTL, what with usage of mechanical computer in 1920s and proto credit card in early 1960s, beside this space race really aren't fair to begin with ESA which backed by European, their dominions, vietnam, korea and japan have more funds, talented recruit pool and time than NASA, a single country space agency.
Last edited:
It might well be that the dice god is always with the Germans atm, but if feels like its gone off the deep end now. Space Travel is one of the most perilous things that man has ever done, but it is a joke. Even with modern Tech, landers still fail when landing on the moon, so I see no reason as to why the Germans in this have had pretty much everything go their own way. Its a bit egregious now. All 4 missions so far have had no issues. Even Apollo wasn't so bloody lucky!
For the most part,it is getting a bit tiring, but at the same time its also not.
I mean, with no Anti-Jewish nazis and WW2, and all other sort of racist crap, pretty any of the European scientists and astrophysicists who went to the US/NASA in OTL did not go here, and are all apart of a multi-national organisation. I mean, you have a lot of European countries, their dominions and even some Asian countries.
SO the US doing it alone in OTL is realistic enough, but then again so is a multi-national conglomerate doing it a couple of years earlier in this ATL then OTL is still believable.
On the other hand, you did raise a concern before about test-flights being all seen off camera. But then again Book II of this story did have their man burn up in re-entry after flying in orbit, so its not to say that all test flights have been successful. The guy burned up over Arizona or New Mexico, I think.
But that does bring up another point.
Please do not tell me that the Germans have magically screwed up the American Space Program. Because at this stage the German interference in the US just getting a bit more annoying now. Hell, its just pointless plot point, I reckon.
So its a bit disappointing that the US have not got that far yet.
The issue is, from what we're seen there has been no issues at all in space, and after reading both the Soviet and American accounts of space travel for my dissertation, it really does feel unrealistic. Plus this is now its completely an America Screw, they seem to always get the bad luck that the white knight Germans don't. Now it might be buliding up for a worse Apollo 13 scenario, but I just feel that's bad writing tbh, and if feels inorganic in a way.
,
As for rest, the ESA Taxidiotis Program ITTL has played out over a decade. Meaning that it would be like Apollo 11 happening in the early 70's IOTL. The other thing is that Apollo was rushed OTTL resulting in three deaths and the near loss of two of the missions.
No sabotage took place, just an artificial deadline causing trouble and a guidance computer that malfunctioned.
As for rest, the ESA Taxidiotis Program ITTL has played out over a decade. Meaning that it would be like Apollo 11 happening in the early 70's IOTL. The other thing is that Apollo was rushed OTTL resulting in three deaths and the near loss of two of the missions.
I do agree with you. So far there has only been one space accident, and that was Thomas Waltz crash landing back in thread 2. You would expect a few more to be seen story wise. I think that is your main issue here, that it seems to happen off screen
But I do think again timeline wise, and having a massive international effort behind the space program (and hence more resources available) its not too unrealistic for it to be where it is.
Oh thank god.
Only guy I can remember that is still a German plant is the FBI dud that Schultz put in who is not the effing DIrector, IIRC.
But no self respecting regulator of a space programme would do a landing without a test run first. Would you want to put yourself in the situation of having a catastrophe in flight and then being ripped to shreds becasue you haven't had the amount of testing you have done. Especially if you have as many interests as this ESA does,
Also OTL Apollo Programme was started in 1961, so it was a comparable age to the Taxidotis program, at 8 years, and you can't say that there aren't voices saying that going from a orbital mission to a landing mission isn't rushing it.
As for this being an "America screw", would you argue that when looking at OTL with the events of the late 60's, Watergate and Trump getting elected to any office? TTL will have none of those things and the Americans have never been depicted as the villains. Also the Germans are hardly "white knights" the low key civil war going on in their back yard as well as several other things ought to be proof of that.
Last edited:
Nasa did pretty much that. Sure they did some Orbit testing but their lander never landed on the moon before apollo 11. Apollo 10 did the testing in moon orbit. Since we only saw two missions and nothing before and inbetween the two missions its not unreasonable that the esa tested the lander in earth orbit or even lunar orbit.
Not sure how much bigger the impact of in lunar orbit testing of the lander had instead of the earth orbit testing but since the testing never went down to landing it doesnt really count. I could see ESA doing the call that testing in earth orbit is enough and not doing a dry test run in lunar orbit since a test run wouldnt go down the last stretch in the landing procedure anyway. Also full test-landing would also need to be manned and would just be first landing than.
Overall i think its pointless to ride that point to death since we never see the full picture in this story since it doesnt have a list of events. We dont have a list of all preceding robot moon landers either. Maybe they were a bit more successful than otl.
Also one launch aborted is better than what happend to apollo 1.
Oh yes, the low key civil war that taken in thousands of troops yes? More like the Troubles in NI, look theres obviously no point in me going on since I got a bit to into detail on the space side, blame that on my trying to do my history dissertation in the subject. However, this is an America Screw as America is the least hardest nation to do anything with TL wise, I would point you to a video by the late Brain4breakfast on how easy it is for america.
Add this to the sheer brainpower they have and they should easily be able to do the same things as the germans, especially if you have competing companies due to teh rampant capitalism in America.....
Last edited:
Yes, and even then you wake up in the middle of the night, sweat drenched, because in the post review, it became clear that how close you came to an complete failure...…...