Appendix A - Schematic of Saturn V
Average R&D Costs for One Saturn I, IB, and V Launch Vehicle
Saturn I
The initial development and production of the Saturn I was accomplished in-house; only the latter stages were placed on contract. Army projects assumed the initial FY 1958 and 1959 costs; NASA’s total costs were not accumulated, during the development phase, to provide a true average unit cost (i.e., the original plan for S-Istages was to procure 21 each). At the conclusion of the program hown on the funding history, the total cost to NASA of the 10 Saturn Is actually launched was $753 million.
Saturn IB and Saturn V
Costs for development and production of the Saturn IBs and Saturn Vs were not collected by specific vehicle because of the magnitude of the modificalions based on mission requirements and because of the sustaining engineering and launch support required to support lengthened schedule restraint. The following unit costs include production of basic hardware plus modifications, spare, and associated ground support equipment for MSFC-responsible hardware only (first stage through instrument unit). Costs exclude all development, sustaining engineering, transportation, propellants, storage, etc., required to launch.
Stage | Basic Hardware Production | Modification Costs | Spares | Stage & Vehicle Ground Support Equipment (GSE) |
GSE Systems Development | Total Stage |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Saturn IB Total Production Cost-$46.7M | ||||||
S-IB | 7.9 | 0.3 | 1.1 | 0.1 | 9.4 | |
S-IVB | 13.0 | 1.9 | 0.9 | 0.2 | 16.0 | |
IU | 8.3 | 0.4 | 0.6 | 0.4 | 9.7 | |
GSE | - | 0.5 | 0.5 | 3.1 | 2.6 | 6.7 |
Engines | 3.6 | - | 1.0 | - | 4.6 | |
Total | 32.8 | 3.1 | 4.1 | 3.8 | 2.6 | 46.4 |
Saturn V Total Production Costs-$113.1M | ||||||
S-IC | 19.4 | 0.2 | 1.4 | 0.3 | 21.3 | |
S-II | 21.0 | 1.0 | 3.6 | 0.6 | 26.2 | |
S-IVB | 15.6 | 0.2 | 1.2 | 0.3 | 17.3 | |
IU | 10.9 | 0.9 | 1.0 | 0.9 | 13.7 | |
GSE | 0.9 | 7.5 | 3.1 | 11.5 | ||
Engines | 20.3 | 2.3 | 0.5 | 23.1 | ||
Total | 87.2 | 2.3 | 10.4 | 10.1 | 3.1 | 113.1 |