21 Jul. 1961: A U.S. Marine helicopter attempts to retrieve the sinking capsule, Liberty Bell 7, of the MR-4 mission. The MR-4 mission with Virgil Grissom aboard was the second crewed suborbital flight boosted by the Mercury-Redstone vehicle. The flight went as expected until just after splashdown, when the hatch cover, designed to release explosively in the event of an emergency, accidentally blew. Grissom was at risk of drowning, but was recovered safely.The attempt to retrieve the capsule failed and it sank and was not recovered until 1999. The recovery ship, the USS Randolph is in the background.
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