Gene Kranz Quotes & Sayings

without the likes of him we would not have made it to the Moon. — Gene Kranz

Spaceflight will never tolerate carelessness, incapacity, and neglect. Somewhere, somehow, we screwed up. It could have been in design, build, or test. Whatever it was, we should have caught it. We were too gung ho about the schedule and we locked out all of the problems we saw each day in our work. Every element of the program was in trouble and so were we. The simulators were not working, Mission Control was behind in virtually every area, and the flight and test procedures changed daily. — Gene Kranz

How long the flight took on one of those old prop aircraft on any given day depended on the size of the bugs that hit the windshield and slowed it down. — Gene Kranz

From its earliest days, NASA had followed a policy of maximum, though prudent, disclosure. We had to do everything openly - and soon under intensive, live TV coverage. — Gene Kranz

You can not operate in this room unless you believe that you are Superman, and whatever happens, you're capable of solving the problem. — Gene Kranz

The story doesn't end here, however. With no car pass and faced with a mile-long walk from the front gate, John came up with an alternative not covered by the regulations. The first day of his suspension, Llewellyn pulled his horse trailer into the parking lot at the Nassau Bay Hotel across from the NASA main gate. Mounting the horse with his leather briefcase, then showing his badge prominently to the surprised guard, Llewellyn galloped through the gate to Mission Control. For the remainder of the week we knew John was in the office or on console when we saw a horse hitched to the bicycle stand. Llewellyn's legend grew once again. — Gene Kranz

I think everyone, once in his life, should be given a ticker-tape parade. — Gene Kranz

Apollo succeeded at critical moments like this because the bosses had no hesitation about assigning crucial tasks to one individual, trusting his judgment, and then getting out of his way. — Gene Kranz

From this day forward, Flight Control will be known by two words: -Tough- and -Competent. - Tough means we are forever accountable for what we do or what we fail to do. We will never again compromise our responsibilities. Every time we walk into Mission Control we will know what we stand for. Competent means we will never take anything for granted. We will never be found short in our knowledge and in our skills. — Gene Kranz

Tears were coursing down the faces of Kennedy's moonstruck recruits. John Kennedy had inspired us with his vision. One by one, we left work to grieve in private. The flag was at half-staff in our hearts. — Gene Kranz

There is no such thing as good enough. You, your team, and your equipment must be the best. That is how you will win victories. — Gene Kranz

To recognize that the greatest error is not to have tried and failed, but that in trying, we did not give it our best effort — Gene Kranz

Although our technical backgrounds were very different, we were both emotional about our work, perpetually optimistic, and gave our people unconditional support. — Gene Kranz

I find myself crying unabashedly, then I try to suck it in, realizing this is inappropriate. — Gene Kranz

Loading new software into new computers and using it for the first time was like playing Russian roulette. It demanded and got a lot of respect. — Gene Kranz

I don't care what anything was designed to do, I care about what it can do. — Gene Kranz

I mentally savored the moment of America's triumph like a fine wine. — Gene Kranz

Mission Control will be perfect. When you leave this meeting today you will go to your office and the first thing you will do there is to write -Tough and Competent- on your blackboards. It will never be erased. Each day when you enter the room these words will remind you of the price paid by Grissom, White, and Chaffee. These words are the price of admission to the ranks of Mission Control. — Gene Kranz

Leadership is fragile. It is more a matter of mind and heart than resources, and it seemed that we no longer had the heart for those things that demanded discipline, commitment, and risk. — Gene Kranz

Coffee was the substance that kept us going. Our surgeons had offered us something stronger, but we were all concerned about our performance deteriorating when the stimulants wore off. — Gene Kranz

Let's work the problem, people. Let's not make things worse by guessing. — Gene Kranz

The tools we used in Mercury were primitive, but the dedication of highly trained people offset the limitations of the equipment available to us in these early days and kept the very real risks under control. — Gene Kranz

Probability said that someday we would run out of luck - as — Gene Kranz

It isn't equipment that wins the battles; it is the quality and the determination of the people fighting for a cause in which they believe. — Gene Kranz

We had risen to probably one of the greatest challenges in history, put a man on the moon in the decade. We'd created incredible technologies. But what was most important, we'd created the teams, what I call the human factor. People who were energized by a mission. — Gene Kranz

High-risk leadership beckons many, but few accept the call. — Gene Kranz

We've never lost an American in space, we're sure as hell not gonna lose one on my watch! Failure is not an option. — Gene Kranz

Faliure is not an option. — Gene Kranz

There is no achievement without risk. — Gene Kranz