Third Stage
The third stage, S-IVB-D arrived at MSFC before any other Saturn V stages because it was destined for dynamic testing in the Saturn IB first. It was assembled by Douglas near Los Angeles. With ceremony and dignitaries for the first Douglas-built S-IVB stage, it set out by barge December 8, 1964, and made its way to New Orleans via the Panama Canal, the Mississippi, Ohio, and Tennessee Rivers to MSFC, where it arrived on January 4, 1965. The same day, MSFC took delivery of the first stage of the Saturn IB for dynamic and facilities checkout testing, S-IB-D/F. The parts were assembled together with the instrument unit designated S-IU-200D/500D (see below) and BP-27 for dynamic testing in the Saturn IB configuration from February to September 1965 before it was allocated to the Saturn V configuration.
Read more about this topic: Saturn V Dynamic Test Vehicle, Development of The Test Article
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