Apollo vs Artemis Capsule Recovery

Apollo vs Artemis Capsule Recovery

Apollo vs Artemis Capsule Recovery: Navy Rescue Swimmers on NASA Splashdown Operations | Calm in the Chaos Podcast Ep. 54
Calm in the Chaos Podcast  ·  Episode 54

U.S. Navy Recovery Operations

Apollo 13 VS Artemis II

Same mission. Different era. The people who actually did the job, side by side for the first time.

Apollo vs Artemis capsule recovery — Mike Longe and Steve Williams break down what really happens when a capsule hits the water: splashdown timeline, swimmer deployment, open-ocean hoist operations, and what’s harder now than it was in 1970.

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The Experts

Who’s in the Water

Two veterans. Two eras. One mission: get the crew home alive. For the first time, the men who executed Apollo-era and Artemis-era capsule recoveries sit together and compare notes.

Apollo Era
Mike Longe
U.S. Navy Helicopter Aircrewman
Apollo Recovery Missions

Mike Longe served as a U.S. Navy helicopter aircrewman during the Apollo program, participating in capsule recovery operations during one of the most demanding and technically complex eras of American spaceflight. He provides a firsthand account of what the Apollo 13 recovery looked like from the aircraft — the sea state, the urgency, the procedures that didn’t exist until they had to.

Artemis Era
Steve Williams
Senior Chief, U.S. Navy Aviation Rescue Swimmer
Artemis Recovery Operations

Senior Chief Steve Williams is a U.S. Navy Aviation Rescue Swimmer with direct experience supporting NASA’s Artemis program capsule recovery operations. Where Apollo relied on aircrewmen, Artemis deploys trained rescue swimmers — a significant doctrinal shift. Williams breaks down modern systems, swimmer deployment into open ocean, and what makes Artemis recovery more — and less — demanding than Apollo.

The Deep Dive

Apollo vs Artemis Capsule Recovery:
Side by Side

The mission is the same. The ocean doesn’t care what year it is. But nearly everything else has changed — personnel doctrine, capsule design, swimmer role, communication systems, and the first-minutes decision tree that determines whether the crew walks away.

Apollo 13

1970 Recovery Operations

Artemis

Modern Recovery Procedures
Recovery Personnel U.S. Navy helicopter aircrewmen. No dedicated rescue swimmer doctrine — the aircrewman performed all hoist recovery functions from aboard the aircraft and deployed UDT Swimmers into the water.
Recovery Personnel U.S. Navy Aviation Rescue Swimmers — a distinct, purpose-trained rate with dedicated swimmer deployment, SMT assistance, Diver open-ocean stabilization, and astronaut extraction roles.
Swimmer Deployment Helicopter aircrewmen deployed directly from the aircraft to the capsule. Procedures were largely improvised and mission-specific given the novelty of the mission profile.
Swimmer Deployment Modern rescue swimmers, Divers, and SMT (Search and Rescue Medical Technicians) follow doctrine-driven deployment sequences into open ocean, approaching the capsule under strict procedural control with purpose-designed equipment.
Capsule Stabilization Apollo capsules with the assistance of Navy UDT deployed a flotation collar designed for the era. Sea state management and collar attachment were high-risk manual operations in open Pacific conditions.
Capsule Stabilization Artemis uses modern stabilization collar systems with evolved attachment procedures. The Diver role includes pre-attachment sea-state assessment and crew status verification, in preparation for helicopter hoist extraction.
Hoist Operations Hoist extraction was performed by helicopter crews. Crew condition and astronaut mobility were significant unknowns after extended re-entry physiological stress.
Hoist Operations Rescue swimmers manage the full hoist evolution in open ocean conditions, coordinating with Navy Divers down with the crew inside the capsule, the ship, and the aircraft — simultaneously.
Critical First Minutes Sea state, capsule orientation (Stable 1 vs. Stable 2), and crew condition were assessed visually. Communication was limited. Improvisation was required.
Critical First Minutes Modern recovery integrates real-time telemetry, pre-coordinated communication protocols, and clear diver-to-swimmer-to-ship-to-aircraft decision chains — though ocean conditions remain uncontrolled.
What Was Harder Then No established doctrine. Apollo missions were writing the playbook in real time. Every recovery was a first-principles problem with limited precedent.
What’s Harder Now Modern capsule profiles, sea state complexity, and the expanded swimmer role create new high-consequence challenges Apollo aircrewmen never faced, but both have their challenges, making intense training critical.

Episode Coverage

What This Episode Covers

  • Apollo 13 recovery operations from a Navy helicopter aircrewman’s perspective
  • Artemis capsule recovery procedures and modern systems
  • The rescue swimmer role vs. legacy helicopter aircrewman doctrine
  • Splashdown timeline — the critical first minutes after impact
  • Open-ocean hoist operations: what can go wrong and what must go right
  • Capsule stabilization collar procedures and sea-state management
  • What’s actually harder in Artemis-era recovery versus Apollo
  • Decision-making under pressure: how military training shapes split-second judgment
  • The evolution of U.S. Navy aviation rescue doctrine from Apollo to Artemis
  • Crew physiological condition post-reentry and its impact on extraction

Episode 54

Listen to the Full Episode

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Questions

Apollo & Artemis Recovery FAQ

How did the U.S. Navy recover the Apollo 13 capsule?

Apollo 13 capsule recovery was executed by U.S. Navy helicopter aircrewmen operating from a Pacific recovery ship. After splashdown, helicopter crews deployed to the capsule, assessed conditions, attached a flotation collar, and hoisted the three astronauts — Jim Lovell, Jack Swigert, and Fred Haise — to the recovery ship USS Iwo Jima. Mike Longe, a Navy helicopter aircrewman who participated in Apollo recovery operations, details these procedures on Episode 54 of Calm in the Chaos.

What is different about NASA Apollo vs Artemis capsule recovery compared?

The most significant doctrinal shift is the role of the recovery personnel. Apollo relied on helicopter aircrewmen; Artemis uses U.S. Navy Aviation Rescue Swimmers — a specially trained rate with dedicated open-ocean swimmer deployment, capsule stabilization, and astronaut extraction protocols. The Orion capsule’s design, the hoist systems, and the coordination architecture between swimmer, ship, and aircraft have all evolved significantly since the Apollo era. Senior Chief Steve Williams compares these differences directly on Episode 54.

What does a Navy rescue swimmer do during a NASA splashdown?

During a NASA capsule splashdown, Navy Aviation Rescue Swimmers deploy from helicopters into open ocean conditions. They approach the capsule, perform a rapid sea-state and capsule-integrity assessment, attach a stabilization collar to prevent capsizing, establish communication with the crew inside, and manage the full hoist extraction sequence — coordinating between the aircraft, the recovery ship, and the astronauts simultaneously. The physical and cognitive demands are significant, particularly in rough sea conditions.

Why is open-ocean capsule recovery so dangerous?

Open-ocean recovery operations combine several simultaneous high-consequence variables: unpredictable sea state, capsule stability risk (Stable 1 vs. Stable 2 orientation), limited astronaut mobility after reentry physiological stress, helicopter hoist complexity in wind and wave conditions, and time-critical decision-making without the ability to pause or reset. Senior Chief Williams specifically addresses which aspects of modern Artemis recovery are more demanding than what Apollo aircrewmen faced in 1970.

How long does capsule recovery take after splashdown?

The splashdown-to-extraction timeline depends heavily on sea state, capsule orientation, and crew condition. The critical first minutes after impact — capsule localization, sea state assessment, swimmer deployment, collar attachment, and crew status verification — form the highest-risk window. Episode 54 walks through this full timeline with the men who executed it, comparing how Apollo and Artemis recovery sequences differ in the moments that matter most.

Your Host

Brian Dickinson

  • U.S. Navy Aviation Rescue Swimmer
  • 2 deployments to Persian Gulf, Operation Southern Watch
  • Everest Solo Summiteer — Blind Descent, 2011
  • Bestselling Author — Blind Descent, Calm in the Chaos
  • Keynote Speaker — CNN, Good Morning America, Fox News, NBC
  • YouVersion Bible App Partner
  • Marquis Who’s Who Honored Listee 2025
  • 100K+ followers · 3.5M+ views

Brian Dickinson is a bestselling author, keynote speaker, and former U.S. Navy Aviation Rescue Swimmer. In 2011, he solo-summited Mount Everest — only to go completely snow-blind at 29,000 feet in the Death Zone. His miraculous blind descent remains one of the greatest survival stories ever told.

As host of the Calm in the Chaos Podcast, Brian brings the same mindset he developed as a rescue swimmer and Everest summiteer to every interview: relentless curiosity, deep respect for the people who go into chaos so others may live, and a commitment to telling stories that don’t get told anywhere else.

229,401 streams and downloads in the first year. Top 10% globally on Listen Notes. More popular than 96% of new podcasts on Spotify.

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