The solid-rocket boosters that help launch the U. S. space shuttle into orbit are the most massive objects ever recovered by parachute. Each booster is over 12 ft. in diameter, 149 feet long from nozzle to nose cone, and weighs, at burn-out, about 176,000 lbs. Inside the nose cone is over 5,000 lbs of parachute equipment designed and developed by Pioneer Aerospace. Four minutes after lift-off, the expended boosters are separated from the shuttle orbiter. They continue to coast upward until reaching an apogee of about 40 miles, where they begin a long, tumbling free fall towards a recovery area in the Atlantic Ocean some 140 miles from the launch site. A small parachute is deployed when the booster is 3 miles above the water and falling at 350 miles per hour. This parachute deploys a 54-ft. drogue parachute to stabilize the booster and bring it to a vertical position. The drogue then deploys a cluster of three, 136-ft-diameter parachutes to slow the booster to a speed that will permit contact with the water without damage. Immediately upon impact, the parachutes are released from the booster and, with the aid of integral flotation provisions, remain floating until winched on board a NASA recovery ship. At the Kennedy Space Center, the drogue and main parachutes are thoroughly washed and rinsed with fresh water, dried, inspected, and re-packed for another flight. parachute design, airdrop, T-10, G12d, clean room manufacturer , MC1-1b MC1-1c, tactical assault personnel, TAPP