Neil Armstrong Dead

[jeff oakley]

Neil Armstrong died yesterday after heart surgery. The first man to set foot on the moon. As a child, sitting watching history made by men who seemed to know no fear, it was mind boggling to witness. After visiting Nasa my regard went up even more after seeing the capsule they went in.

A good innings at 82 but sad that there are so few left who have been to another planet.

[Matt Seabrook]

Agreed Jeff RIP Neil

[Fat Albert]

Top guy, cool under pressure, smart and an engineer. As a recreational glider pilot :-), he was used to having only one chance to land so It was no coincidence that Armstrong was chosen for the key missions.

I was 16 and glued to the drama unfolding in black & white, so long son and thanks,

PS

Between 1962, when Kennedy said 'go', and 1972 when the last Apollo mission flew, NASA spent approx $30bn on manned spaceflight, to put that into perspective, in the same period of time US women spent more on lipstick!

[Terry Everall]

The moon is not a PLANET!

Passing of an era

[Meakin]

Real shame, I am certain that the moon landings inspired that generation into the "can do" attitude that made so many achievements and changes in society after that.

RIP Neil and thank you.

[Paul Hurdsfield - Joint Manchester AO]

RIP to one of my all time heroes, I was 20 at the time and glued to the tv, it was like magic after being brought up on Dan Dare and Buck Rogers at the flicks in the 50s, this was the real thing, WOW!!!

[Captain Colonial]

A great and modest man who made a difference to everyone and made us all proud to be human. Thanks for the excitement and the chance to stay up way past my bedtime when I was 9. I think everyone on that night went outside and looked at the full moon and thought, "There's people on that right now!". Have a great flight Neil, you deserve it.

[Dave Eastwood (Gadgetman)]

Another hero of mine checks out, a sad passing. But what a life.

[User0083]

RIP Neil Armstrong. The man responsible for the United States' most unique achievement: planting the Stars and Stripes somewhere without having to kill anyone.

[M444TTB]

RIP Neil Armstrong. The man responsible for the United States' most unique achievement: planting the Stars and Stripes somewhere without having to kill anyone.

Well, they had to let Werner Von Braun off some war crimes charges instead.

It's sad Neil Armstrong has died, but what a life! I'll be honest and say I'm jealous of anyone old enough to have seen the moon landings. Im not sure that there have been any international events (of a positive nature) so memorable in my life.

[User0083]

It's sad Neil Armstrong has died, but what a life! I'll be honest and say I'm jealous of anyone old enough to have seen the moon landings. Im not sure that there have been any international events (of a positive nature) so memorable in my life.

I agree with that!

My uncle was born as the first steps were taken and I must have the only family that missed it!

[Dave Eastwood (Gadgetman)]

And yet how quickly at the time, the public at large, seemed to become bored with space exploration.

It fascinates me just how basic, if not primitive a lot of the technology and engineering they were using was. Also a mark of just how courageous they were for attempting the feats they did.

It does amaze me what the human race can achieve when we set ourselves to a common goal.

[Norman Verona]

Well, they had to let Werner Von Braun off some war crimes charges instead.

I can't see why Von Braun should be a war criminal. It isn't a crime to help your country in times of war. It is a crime to herd people into gas chambers.

The NASA technicians were in awe of Concorde. They just couldn't believe anyone could build a passenger plane that flew at twice the speed of sound.

[M444TTB]

I'm not sure I think he should be, but amongst others he probably should have gone on trial.

Concorde is fantastic and I'm not surprised NASA liked it. Another backwards step now we have no replacement. Again it pre-dates me. I think it was in operation 5+ years when I was born!

[hilux]

The NASA technicians were in awe of Concorde. They just couldn't believe anyone could build a passenger plane that flew at twice the speed of sound.

I thought they (and the Russians) tried to build one but couldnt. The brilliance in particular was managing the heat cycling of the structure which expanded at high speed up to 300mm and managing engine failures which brough instability in a Delta winged aircraft.

The conspiracy theorist in me says if you can build the SR71 Blackbird you could build a Concorde but I consider the task was a financial black hole and at the height of the cold war and the race to space it was not an enterprise they were going to compete with.

PS: I am old enough to remember the grainy B&W pictures at the time, even as a youngster the significance was understood and the memories are clear for ever.