The docking cone was connected to the front end by shock absorbing dampers. A minimum of five engine starts was possible. The Agena propulsion systems could be run while the Gemini was docked, allowing the GATV to be used to change the orbit of the docked pair. Propulsion was via a bi-propellant system, using unsymmetrical dimethylhydrazine (UDMH) and inhibited red fuming nitric acid (IRFNA). The primary and secondary propulsion systems were at the aft end of the target vehicle with the attitude control gas tanks, and the main propellant (fuel and oxidizer) tanks were located in the mid-section. The forward section of the Agena airframe held the guidance, flight control electronics, telemetry, command, tracking, electrical power, and propellant pressurization equipment. The GATV was a 7.93 meter long cylinder with a diameter of 1.52 meters, a dry mass of 1853 kg, and a fueled mass at orbital injection of 3228 kg. The GATV had a docking cone at the forward end into which the nose of the Gemini spacecraft could be inserted and held with docking latches. The Gemini Agena Target Vehicle was designed to be launched into Earth orbit prior to a Gemini mission and used for rendezvous and docking practice.
The GATV was used as a passive target for a rendezvous by the Gemini 10 mission in July, 1966. A total of 5439 commands were sent to the target vehicle and executed before electrical power was exhausted on the 10th day of orbit. These left the GATV in a near-circular 380 km orbit. The GATV was used for further test manuevers following this, including eight orbital firings of the primary propulsion system and two firings of the secondary system. Gemini 8 undocked from the GATV and the mission was terminated early. However, attitude and maneuver thruster malfunction (on the Gemini 8 spacecraft) caused the docked spacecraft to tumble.
The Gemini 8 spacecraft was launched 1 hour, 41 minutes later and accomplished rendezvous and docking with the GATV.
The Gemini 8 Agena Target Vehicle (GATV-5003) was launched from Cape Canaveral using an Atlas-Agena D rocket on 16 March 1966 at 10:00:03 a.m.
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