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View of the drogue mortar.

Picture 1 of 2.

In the event of an ejection, this pyrotechnic device would fire once the astronaut decelerated to a velocity and descended to an altitude at which it was safe to deploy a parachute. The drogue gun would fire, generate gas pressure, and propel a 10-ounce slug away from the crewman. A nylon strap and a wire pin were attached to the slug. As the wire was pulled by the slug, it would open the parachute pack. The nylon strap was attached to the top of the drogue chute and would pull the drogue and approximately one-third of the main canopy from the pack. The drogue parachute would then inflate and extract the remainder of the main canopy.