Apollo 11 Launch Permit
This vehicle permit allowed astronaut Charlie Duke and his family access to the NASA VIP viewing site at the Kennedy Space Center for the launch of Apollo 11 in 1969. It is part of my personal collection of spaceflight memorabilia.
Duke is one of only twelve men who have walked on the surface of the moon. His trip to the moon was on Apollo 16 which flew in April 1972. Apollo 16 was the 5th of only 6 lunar landing missions.
Prior to Apollo 16, however, Duke played a pivotal role in the first lunar landing mission, Apollo 11. He holds the distinction of being the first person to initiate a conversation with a person on another world. During the Apollo 11 mission, Duke held the position of CapCom (Capsule Communicator) at the Mission Control Center in Houston, Texas. If you watched the Apollo 11 landing live on TV or if you have watched the footage since, you have undoubtedly heard Charlie Duke. Just after the lunar module Eagle had landed on the surface of the moon, Duke radioed to the crew the following words “We copy you down, Eagle”, indicating that telemetry data screens in Mission Control had signaled that the spacecraft had safely landed. Back on the moon, Neil Armstrong responded to Duke’s query with the words “Houston, Tranquility Base here. The Eagle has landed.”
Apollo 11 Launch Permit
This vehicle permit allowed astronaut Charlie Duke and his family access to the NASA VIP viewing site at the Kennedy Space Center for the launch of Apollo 11 in 1969. It is part of my personal collection of spaceflight memorabilia.
Duke is one of only twelve men who have walked on the surface of the moon. His trip to the moon was on Apollo 16 which flew in April 1972. Apollo 16 was the 5th of only 6 lunar landing missions.
Prior to Apollo 16, however, Duke played a pivotal role in the first lunar landing mission, Apollo 11. He holds the distinction of being the first person to initiate a conversation with a person on another world. During the Apollo 11 mission, Duke held the position of CapCom (Capsule Communicator) at the Mission Control Center in Houston, Texas. If you watched the Apollo 11 landing live on TV or if you have watched the footage since, you have undoubtedly heard Charlie Duke. Just after the lunar module Eagle had landed on the surface of the moon, Duke radioed to the crew the following words “We copy you down, Eagle”, indicating that telemetry data screens in Mission Control had signaled that the spacecraft had safely landed. Back on the moon, Neil Armstrong responded to Duke’s query with the words “Houston, Tranquility Base here. The Eagle has landed.”