The Apollo 13 malfunction was caused by an explosion and rupture of oxygen tank number 2. All oxygen stores were lost within about three hours, along with loss of water, electrical power, and use of the propulsion system. The crew’s safety has been compromised when NASA did not address the problem seen in oxygen tank number 2 prior to launch. There was an unnecessary launch time pressure put on the astronauts, which forced Jim to break a performing team and accept a new crew member. This put the crew back at the storming/norming team development stage, which compromised team performance in space. In addition, NASA has an illusion of invulnerability and therefore lacks contingency plans for possible accidents, and the astronauts are not trained to functio

Based on the previous discussion that identified the root problems and causes of the Apollo 13 accident, the following are the decision criteria for the alternative solutions:

It is recommended that within the next 1-3 months NASA’s engineering team should start fixing the defective coil that caused the accident. This task should be complete and fully tested prior to the next launch to ensure that the same accident does not happen again. At the same time, NASA’s management team should introduce a policy that would prevent a newly formed astronaut team from going into space. This policy should clearly define the process that the new team has to go through in order to be qualified to go into space. In addition, it is recommended that NASA should develop a decision-making management structure within the next year or two. This structure must ensure that the right people have the authority and the responsibility to make the right decisions. If this solution does not provide the desired outcome of improved communications and better decision-making, NASA should hire a consulting team to help them encourage brainstorming and develop an open communication environment where people would feel comfortable to express their ideas. NASA should also consider developing contingency plans and training astronauts to act in emergency situations in order to improve team cohesiveness and ensure crew’s safety.

Finally, the illusion of invulnerability prevented NASA from developing contingency plans and training astronauts to act under pressure in extreme situations. The spacecraft was not equipped with additional oxygen supply, carbon dioxide filters, or anything else for that matter that could help the crew survive in extreme conditions.

Some topics in this essay:
Decision-making Structure, Justification Based, Organizational Behaviour, Statement Apollo, Fred Jack, Jim Fred, Total Develop, Ken Jim, Behaviour OB, Total Fix, prior launch, oxygen tank, nasa executives, apollo 13, contingency plans, performing team, team development, maximum weight criterion, maximum weight, tank 2, weight criterion, oxygen tank 2, apollo 13 accident, team development process, decision-making management structure,