The American flag heralds the flight of Apollo 11 man's first lunar landing mission.

The American flag heralds the flight of Apollo 11, man's first lunar landing mission. The Apollo 11 Saturn V space vehicle lifted off with astronauts Neil A. Armstrong, Michael Collins and Edwin E. Aldrin Jr. at 9:32 a.m. EDT from KSC's Launch Complex 39A. During the planned eight-day mission, Armstrong and Aldrin will descend in a Lunar Module (LM) to the Moon's surface while Collins orbits overhead in the Command Module. The two astronauts are to spend 22 hours on the Moon, including two-and-one-half hours outside the LM. They will gather samples of lunar material and will deploy scientific experiments that will transmit data about the lunar environment. They will rejoin Collins in the Command Module for the return trip to Earth.