"I want to offer my congratulations to this years' Canadian Air & Space Pioneer Award winners. John Hodge and Owen Maynard were both important parts of the remarkable team that helped to make the voyage of Apollo 11 a resounding success."
Best regards
Buzz Aldrin
Apollo Astronaut
"In October 1963 I was fortunate to be chosen by NASA to become an astronaut. Over the next eight years my life would be filled with extraordinary events and adventures including a trip to the moon. However, it was during my first space flight, in March of 1966 that I had a close-call with the problems and risks of space flight. I shared that mission with Neil Armstrong aboard our spacecraft, Gemini 8. Our primary task was to perform the first ever docking in space, with an Agena Target vehicle, an unmanned spacecraft. The flight controller in Houston for our mission was John Hodge. Shortly after docking with the Agena, the spacecraft began to roll uncontrollably. We discovered later that the thrusters were stuck. It could have been a fatal problem. However, thanks to our own efforts and the calm resolve of the team in Houston, led by John Hodge, we managed to come home safely. John was one of the key people in Mission Control during the space race. Sometimes people forget that it wasn't just the pilots who had the right stuff. Congratulations John on your Canadian Air & Space Pioneer award."
David Scott
Apollo Astronaut
“The Eagle has landed.”
They were four simple words, but for the world that watched, they heralded the age of human space exploration. I’m Canadian astronaut Bob Thirsk, onboard the International Space Station. It’s an honour to celebrate the 40th Anniversary of the Apollo 11 mission with all of you at the Canadian Air & Space Museum.
When John F. Kennedy made his “We choose to go to the Moon” speech, he gathered together the will of the American people to make what seemed to some an impossible dream, a reality.
The Apollo missions did more than inspire Americans to pursue the heights of science, technology and exploration—they inspired the world.
In fact, the first feet to touch down on the grey and desolate Sea of Tranquility were manufactured by a company based in Longueuil Quebec, in the same city where the Canadian Space Agency now resides.
Also impressive, some of Canada’s best aeronautical engineers contributed their expertise to NASA’s quest to land a man on the moon.
The spirit of the Apollo program lives on in Canada’s own space exploration endeavours, from Marc Garneau’s first voyage into orbit twenty-five years ago, to the present time of this long-duration mission.
Today, let’s honour the dedication and the courage of the ones who blazed the trail for us. Let’s follow their steps and be inspired by their leap of faith.
