Flying the Lunar Landing Training Vehicle (1969)

This news footage for Houston’s KPRC-TV captures NASA astronaut Neil Armstrong flying the Lunar Landing Training Vehicle (LLTV) at Ellington Air Force Base in Houston on June 16, 1969. Armstrong performed six simulated lunar landings, testing various maneuvers in preparation for Apollo 11 the following month. The LLTV duplicated the flight behavior of the Lunar Module (LM). It consisted of a gimbaled jet engine mounted face down so that its thrust simulated the gravity the LM would encounter as it made its descent.