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Flight To The Moon (Closed 1975) |
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Written by Louis Mongello
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- Flight To The Moon open from 1971-1975 - replaces by Mission to Mars
- Flight to the Moon opened on Christmas Eve, 1971. "#92" was always the flight number, even after the attraction switched its destination to the Red Planet. 162 was the maximum number of people who could fit in the attraction at one time.
- Tom Morrow was the Director of Operations in Mission Control for the Flight to the Moon attraction. He was replaced by Mr. Johnson when the ride became a Mission to Mars. Tom Morrow can still be found in Tomorrowland.... sort of. You can hear his name being paged while riding the Tomorrowland transit Authority.
- On Christmas Eve, 1971, Flight to the Moon, sponsored by McDonnell-Douglas, opened in Tomorrowland. Ironically, an attraction in a land dealing with the future, (that also took place "sometime in the future") revolved around a feat that had been accomplished just a few years earlier - a space flight to the moon.
- This "D-Ticket" attraction featured "Mr. Tom Morrow" in the pre-show explaining the Mission Control Center. When the 162 guests entered the circular theater, "Flight #92" took them on a journey to the moon.
- Flight to the Moon was replaced on June 7, 1975 by "Mission to Mars" developed in conjunction with NASA. The pre-show, and in fact much of the ride, was similar to its predecessor, although Mr. Tom Morrow was now "Mr. Johnson," and now women appeared to be allowed in the control room. When guests entered the theater, they felt simulated G-forces as their shuttle lifted off for the red planet. Screens located on the floor and ceiling showed guests the views from above and below as they approached Mars. After the ship sustained damage from a meteor shower, the crew was forced to make an emergency landing.
- Mission to Mars closed on October 4, 1993, and was eventually replaced by Alien Encounter, which paid tribute to the former attraction in the queue area, where an upcoming lecture at the Tomorrowland Interplanetary Convention Center was entitled, "Mission to Mars: History or Hoax?" given by "Tom Morrow."
- When "Flight to the Moon" opened in 1971, it was already well on its way to being replaced, as it was already outdated. Between man having landed on the moon just a few years before, the flight being televised nationally, and NASA's moon projects trailing off, no one really cared about a flight to the moon anymore. When it was replaced by Mission to Mars in 1975, the attraction was pretty much the same, except the name of the attraction and your destination changed. .
Tags: Magic Kingdom Trivia Tomorrowland Flight To The Moon Mission to Mars
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