Bob Hoover’s “energy management” ,performing aerobatics with both engines off to a landing and taxi back....without restarting, was the most amazing flying I’ve ever seen.
To watch him do that show with a non aerobatic twin commander was the only reason i used to go to oshgosh. After watching his performance you might as well leave because everything else looked second rate.
@@marlinweekley51 I’m not quite that harsh on the others as I really enjoyed many other aerobatic pilots and the Birds and Angels never disappointed, but from a pure pilot skill perspective, I don’t think anyone topped Bob. He was just so smooth and precise. I’ve always used Bob as my role model for how to fly as an instrument rated private pilot.
@@LTVoyager ok Blue Angel u bet. I would fly my family to Jack Edwards and drive over to watch BA practice on tuesdays - never got tired of watch them 😀 but to be honest I could only watch an over powered Pitts (etc) do x number of spins before it became a little underwhelming - I’ll also make exception for the Red Bull helicopter 😆
Another great video Scott. Neil made a career out of pulling the fat from the fire. He also flew the X-15, once overshooting Edwards to the point of having to consider landing at LAX. But he barely cleared the mountain range and made a lake bed instead. I’m sure he shined in training also and his experience on Gemini eight, the LLRV, the X 15, and training no doubt got him a seat Apollo 11. He was pretty cool under fire. A couple of small corrections. The best estimate is that he landed with about 17 seconds of fuel remaining. They couldn’t tell from the gauges, which like most cars and aircraft, aren’t that super accurate when the tanks are low. They calculated the remaining fuel after the flight by integrating the thrust levels and burn times on strip charts. During the flight itself they had a guy visually integrate the charts and give his best estimates of fuel remaining. That’s where the 60 and 30 second callouts come from during descent. They overshot the landing zone because they had not released the air pressure in the tunnel between the two spacecraft. When they separated the lunar lander got a little kick from that pressure, and that put them several miles down range. You were correct that the primary crew, Neil and Buzz, had not practiced the computer program alarms in the simulator prior to flight. But the controllers and back up crew had. About a week before the flight the simulation managers realized they had never practiced computer failures so they ran some additional simulations with the controllers and back up crew. During one such simulation the back up crew aborted a landing because of those alarms, and the simulation managers pointed out that the abort was the wrong decision because those particular alarms were not critical. As a result, the flight controllers put together a small notebook (a QRM) of computer alarms and proper reactions. They referred to that notebook when the alarms flashed and allowed the crew to continue. If you listen carefully to the flight controllers when the alarms go off you will hear Charlie Dukes (the LM communicator) say “just like the one we had“ . He was referring to that sim. The reason that the computer alarms went off in the first place was because the computer was overloaded. Buzz Aldrin was known as Dr. Rendezvous. He had received a PhD in orbital mechanics specializing in orbital rendezvous and that helped get him into the space program.The check list said that, during descent, the rendezvous radar should not be turned on. But Buzz had other ideas. As Dr. Rendezvous, he wanted to make sure the computer knew where to point the spacecraft in case they aborted, so he threw the switch that left the rendezvous radar on. Some say it was a mistake, but he has admitted to doing it intentionally. While the little 8 bit, 16 KB computer was managing lunar lander systems, flying the landing sequence, and interpreting landing radar, it got overloaded by the rendezvous radar hunting for the command module. It also knew, based on the phase of flight that it was in, which operations to drop if it got overloaded. Which is why it was not a threat to the landing. It simply flashed the alarm and quit computing the rendezvous calculations. And the controllers new, as a result of the simulation and a hand written QRM, what to do. What is it you always say? Practice practice practice!
You keep blowing me away, man. I've heard tales of Armstrong's achievements since I was a kid...but never with such passion, respect and awe...and you hit it all right in the bullseye. Always be learning, and learn from the best. Learn from your mistakes and theirs...and learn from your successes...and theirs. Those were the biggest damned tufts I ever saw but holy cow...talk about fascinating. Nothing like real time experimentation to turn theory into reality right before your eyes. Thanks for doing what you do. You have a knack.
Watching these channels is very useful and important, we also in the Navy said If you aint Cheatin you aint trying. I love this Channel like listening to my Dad and I miss him lots. LCDR James R. Goggin USN
as a guy who is not yet a pilot, it seems that a constant theme of yours is knowledge and practice is good, and more knowledge and more practice is better. I will keep this in mind as I (hopefully) start my pilot training over the next year. Keep up the good work.
As flight is such a dynamic condition, I think the best pilots never stop training, plan their flights carefully, live in the moment of the flight as it progresses, and never give up when things inevitably go wrong.
Scott, Neil was darn good, to say the least. But the best of the best was my dad, Stan Kakol, Chief Test Pilot for Bell Aerosystems on the X-22A project. I wouldn't be a good test pilot's son if I didn't believe that!!
Scott , former fighter pilot here. Thanks for sharing this vídeo. It is full of aeronautical insights and a good starter for a flight safety presentation.good job !
Hi Scott, I am a new subscriber to your wonderful channel. I must say your discussions, analysis and storytelling is so interesting. Keep up the fantastic work, I am really enjoying going through the older videos. Take care, and best regards, Rob from Durban, South Africa.
I had a ground school (pilot) instructor who used to tell us “There are bold pilots & old pilots, but very few old, bold pilots”. This was very good & I watched the moon landing for real. I was 20.
Thank You again for a great video. As I rejoin the World of aviation, I don't want to be that 18 year old kid, arrogant, and fearless. I realize how many times I could have been killed and killed others through stupidity and lack of preparedness. I am embarrassed that I didn't put in the work and grateful that I ran out of money and couldn't be a hazard to myself or others at a more tender age. I practice constantly. I go up with an instructor regularly. I watch these videos every chance I get, and try to keep the game in front of me. I also realize improving my odds means an appropriate aircraft flown in appropriate conditions during appropriate times, and rules out old Monneys and Bonanzas near TBO. For me LSA has the same view and same thrill at 3 gallons per hour with Rotax 912 under 500 hours and a parachute just in-case. and improves my odds. Thanks again love the show!
My very first couple of flights , after takeoff, began under the hood and continued almost every flight thereafter, for the ten to fifteen minutes it took us to get to the practice area. John Alves, my CFI, would tap the instrument,to create an appropriate scan pattern for me. This saved my butt as a student when I ,solo at night, was doing TG’s at KIZA, a pocket of Marine layer moved in above me, flew into IMC, went to my training, pulled the power back, descended back to VFR, landing back at KIZA, and took a taxi back to SBA!
I am reminded of an old joke. A traveler to New York City asks, "How do you get to Carnegie Hall?" The New Yorker answers, "Practice, practice, practice." I thought of this in 1974 during the oil crisis when flying hours were cut and often wondered how many planes and crews were lost because of reduced flying hours. Did we really save money? My thought beside the devastation a family faces when a pilot is killed is that whenever we lose a major or captain with years of experience and many flight hours, this person is replaced with someone fresh out of pilot training. As a former flight surgeon I would add that training applies to many fields with medicine being one near the top. That is why we always talk about the practice of medicine. Thanks for a great video.
Wow, great information..I new Armstrong flew the X planes and I new about the low fuel and the different landing location but the rest just blew me away. Great video.
I absolutely would spend my time with one humble person over being in a crowd of people that are boastful or proud of what they did from sheer luck or otherwise!!! My personal thought on being humble, is it affords you the opportunity to learn and hopefully never experience a bad situation.. Loved your video!! Keep up the great work!!!
Not a pilot.67 yo... Never been in a private plane. Though I wish I had become a pilot and love flying and planes. Have friends that are pilots. I enjoy these videos and the" hanger talk" and think I use the ideas and information in other life activities. Scuba diving, running my 42 foot sport fish and other boats. Fishing of all types. Target shooting. Firearms. Teaching my grand kids what life is about and how to do things well in life without you or your friends that you can influence making the ultimate mistake . Driving a 42' boat 100 miles offshore for multiple days requires planning, weather knowledge, knowledge of systems and on and on and practice of how the hull and propulsion interact with different sea states and weather. We use similar instruments but travel much more slowly. Docking a large boat well especially in wind and current is a little like greasing a landing. Thanks for sharing your knowledge! I enjoy!
There are others and I agree the seal on his character. His mindset of staying out of the exploiting of publicity speaks to who he was. I was lucky to be friends with another similar person that changed my life during my teen years. I am forever grateful.
Great subject and comments. I encourage anyone who has not seen the landing film to do so. It is quite amazing. Thank your Scott. I learn something from each one of your videos.
Not bad for a kid that started in a Champ! Neil Armstrong, “The Humble Hero” is one of the all time greats. The Apollo 11 landing is among the best pilotage ever performed! Great video! Thanks for putting it together.
Scott - I just found your channel and I am quite impressed. I REALLY like the way you approach things. I find myself shaking my head "YES" virtually all the time. I feel certain that I was in your top ten for this video (grin), but I understand why Neil beat me out. I remember watching the moon landing on TV just as if it was yesterday. Keep up your great work!
Bob Hoover who spent years in experimental aircraft he learned how to be a test pilot by working as a depot pilot in WW2 aircraft shipped in by boxes and built by local labor in the middle east he had to fly them. He said it was common to find controls reversed. He said engine, and gear failures were routine this is how he learned to fly aircraft land them without an engine. One of his test flights after the war he flew a German aircraft that had the jet engine intake right above your head you could not climb out when it stalled it fell backwards toward the ground you could not recover. Bob said it was the most dangerous airplane he ever flown.
Know your systems inside and out and know your options concerning terrain. It not only helps you but anyone you can help in an emergency. Do not assume. There's no such thing as never, ever and completely like my dad would say. He's an Orville & Wilbur Wright winner and even wrote a lot of the Hawker 800 manual.
Great info & I watch your channel faithfully. In this vid I missed a bunch of your commentary due to the flight communications in the background. Oh yeah - and thank you for your military service.
1956 cessna 172, my third solo flight in the pattern at kvgt, on extended downwind for rwy 12 L, i pull the cabin air knob all the way out for it was getting hot, nothing dramatic happens, everything still good and normal. a short while later, engine gets quiet, airspeed drops, altitude drops too, I cycle the carb heat which was on-nothing happens, I advance throttle, engine purrs but no thrust gained. I looked over my shoulder to runway which seemed beyond gliding distance due to extended downwind. i got worried, my hormones did their job and increased my heart rate and awareness. i checked fuel-on both. I checked mixture to find it full lean... advanced it full forward and engine came alive. hallelujah. relief. and simply continued the flight for couple more touch and goes. went to my instructors hangar to tell him what had just happened. i pulled mixture full lean when i thought i was pulling the cabin air knob. he said same mistake was done by others since both mixture knob and cabin air knob in this model 172 is black and very similar if not the same. i will never make this mistake again and I feel good about handling my first emergency calmly no matter it was self induced.
I love history and yes aviation history too, In the Navy we were told the story of a naval aviator during Vietnam had to cut his left arm off in the cockpit to come aboard ship due to combat damage. And yes Neil Armstrong was also Glider Pilot (like me!!) I agree Mr. Armstrong was amazing he must have had THE best instructors.
Thanks Scott for sharing your thoughts about Neil Armstrong’s unparalleled ability to mentally process information under extreme pressure and execute. I really enjoy your videos! You’re as comfortable to listen to as my favorite old pair of shoes are to wear.
I agree,he was a great man,none of us could know what it is like to leave the planet on top of the fastest machine ever made by man then walk on another planet and return home safely to earth, you can't commend or honor this achievement highly enough.
I enjoy the points you make in the video your knowledge is well worth being shared. At times your on camera commentary audio is lost under the audio of the moon landing accompanying your on camera presentation.
I do agree with your choice - and why. Just one more Neil Armstrong incident - returning after an X-15 flight he lost concentration for a couple of seconds right at the critical re-entry point, and overshot; gathered it together, re-entered at some distance further down the Pacific states and in the descent overshot ‘Frisco and LA. Ground control had written him and / or the aircraft off - they thought he couldn’t make it - but Armstrong glided it westward, lined up with Edwards, and nailed the dead-stick landing - right on the button. Didn’t even have to fold up a ‘chute nor walk to his ride back to the ops centre. Again, it showed his mastery of the aircraft, and followed the well-known adage, “Aviate” (fly it at best glide speed), “Navigate” (follow the curve back to Edwards), and then “Communicate” (he told Edwards he was bringing it home) - and he did! Thanks, Scott, for such a wonderful, graphic lesson for what we all need to do and think about.
I like your videos, keep it up! I am a somewhat recent A36 owner. I bought it about 9 months ago and love it (about 45-50 hours in type). I would love to see you make a video on crosswind landings in the A36. Thanks for what you have been doing.
Good point on the speed / stall relationship. Get comfortable with the stall and it’ll be a non issue when it happens accidentally. Just gotta get to know your plane.
I believe the 1202 alarm was caused by Buzz Aldrin who left the rendezvous radar on in case the mission needed to be aborted (contrary to procedure). Only the landing radar was supposed to be on during landing. The extra computations caused the computer to run out of time.
@@FlyWirescottperdue best Hollywood landing I ever saw. How did they get through the Vanallen radiation belt? Serious question, why haven't we've been there since. I think the evidence proves it was fake.
I landed with 20 minutes fuel remaining once, but never 20 seconds! A close second to Neil Armstrong would be Jim Lovell. Watch Apollo 13, or better yet read the book Lost Moon. More extraordinary aeronautical decision making!
Best Pilot ever is Gene McNealy who has flown the t6 at Reno for years and with the Aero Shell Team as well. For a Space Driver my pick is Pete Conrad. But truth is….most of the guys that flew into space were at the top of the game. ON 11…people don’t give Buzz enough credit for the landing…Buzz and Neal worked like one to get the Eagle on the moon. It was not a one man landing was my point. Enjoy your work…thank you.
Two things I learned: - how bad ass Neil Armstrong was (I never knew, specifically) - HOW BAD ASS those tell tails on the Beechcraft are! Neato! The full length ones sure do visually have greater impact than the little ones!
During the Apollo 11 debrief, Neil took a little bit of flack for his decision to override the LM autopilot and burn so close to abort fuel. His response was something that all pilots should bring to their aviating: "As spacecraft commander, I reserve my God-given right to be wishy-washy."
Scott, I'd like to encourage you to work on your delivery. You tend to mumble, slur your words, and speak rapidly. This sometimes makes it hard to follow your interesting content. Thank you.
Scott, I listen to you with headphones. I need to because my hearing is getting worse as I age. I learn a lot from your vlogs, but I do miss some because your speech is not very distinct at times, even with headsets. It would help to talk slower and/or enunciate more clearly. That's all and thanks.
Armstrong was a great human being and a great pilot. But, he was the best pilot you ever saw? What about so many of the best airshow pilots? They are incredibly skilled. Sean Tucker, Skip Stewart, Bob Herendeen, Jim LeRoy, Bobby Younkin, Jimmy Franklin, Art Scholl, Leo Loudenslager, etc. These are the best pilots I have seen in person.
If only American business mgmt applied the same principles, rigor and focus. Employees would be infinitely more productive, innovative and valuable team members to collective and individual growth.
Speed IS a crutch. A lot of kids and new pilots in our RC club could never fly my old beat up clunker that I fly and love. Their salvation is more power and up elevator. They have learned to fly the motor rather than the airplane. The old clunker is like flying a 60 HP cub that has a worn out engine. Fly safe.
you hit the nail on the head ,nothing much learned flying A to B with your hair on fire ,slow down ,right down and explore your aeroplane in and just off the stall is what we should be advising ,NOT carry another 5 Kts for mother .
@@FlyWirescottperdue .... I worked on the flight-deck of the USS America during the '6 Day War', I should have got that! Navy Pilots were the best at both in my book.................thank you for all you do for Aviation and for us ground-huggers
Undocking Gemini 8 with a stuck thruster was Pilot Error. Flying your Panther into a wire was Pilot Error. Flying the X-15 out of the flight profile was Pilot Error. Getting your T-33 stuck in a muddy lakebed was Pilot Error. Ejection from the LLTV was an avoidable error. 1202 and 1201 alarms were LM Pilot error. Of the 3 aboard Apollo 11, Armstrong had the LEAST spaceflight experience. Aldrin had an aerospace doctorate. Armstrong had a bachelor's. Collins was a TPS grad. Armstrong never attended any test pilot school (not until the 1970s, AFTER he got back from the Moon). Every other spaceflight commander throughout Mercury, all throughout Gemini, right up until the end of Apollo was a TPS graduate. Not him. One approach to history is to remember it accurately. Not to distort it. Compare: "Ringo isn't the best drummer in the world. He isn't even the best drummer in the Beatles." Arguments could likewise be made that both Aldrin and Collins were better qualified to command Apollo 11, with either of them being the one to take that First Step. Schirra, Stafford, Young, Conrad and Lovell likewise had FAR MORE spaceflight experience than Armstrong. (Let alone others like Gordon and Cernan.) If you set the criteria for the astronaut to do that first landing by selecting the one with the most experience, having made the least near-fatal errors, there were PLENTY ahead of Neil Armstrong. Let's try to maintain clear perspective on why Neil was chosen. It was NOT because he was the most experienced astronaut who had made the fewest errors. Neil Armstrong, the best pilot you ever saw? A strong argument can be made that he was not even in the top half of his astronaut class (behind Young, Conrad, Lovell and Stafford, with McDivitt and Borman likewise having loads more spaceflight experience than him). Nor the best choice within his own crew. Along with having far more spaceflight experience and far more education, Buzz had also shot down two MiGs in Korea. Where Neil flew ground attack, and ejected after flying into an obstacle he failed to see and avoid.
So, not a fan. The 1201/1202 alarms were because Aldrin left the radar on. Nice try on that. Time in Space is not a measure of ability, surviving a stressful, possibly fatal event with a cool head may be just slightly more important than time in a chair. . Elaborate on the errors you point out. Just saying the words mean nothing. Sign your shot next time. Throwing spears and hiding behind a pseudonym is bogus. Thanks for watching!
@@FlyWirescottperdue I am a HUGE fan of Neil Armstrong. What I am advocating here is remembering history accurately. 1202/1201 - I stated that it was the LM Pilot's fault. You say 'Buzz' as though you're offering a correction. Neil never flew the LLRV. He flew the LLTV. And those who read my words carefully there can see I did not fault him for that error either. Yet, it was completely avoidable. Facts are facts, regardless of who asserts them. I understand your desire to shoot the messenger, bit if you see clipping your wing off on a ground wire to be an example of exceptional piloting skill, then I will simply beg to differ. You just swept that one under the rug, as you did with his mess with Yeager. I, however, have offered the full picture. For anyone who thinks undocking was a good call, I recommend looking into the proper procedure. As for heroes of mine screwing up, the biggest example is probably Gene Cernan flying his chopper straight into the Banana River while showboating for some bikini chicks. Talk about embarrassing. Yet Deke assigned him to Apollo 17 anyway. He, by the way, was the only other non-TPS grad given a NASA command. Him and Neil. Only ones throughout the entire program. One other exception early in Shuttle. And when he screwed the pooch on his landing, that was the end of it. TPS then became mandatory. The most curious thing about 17 is that NO ONE on that flight had ever been to TPS. So you could say that this last Moon landing was an operational flight. The one heavily experienced test pilot got booted off that mission. By insistence of the National Academy of Scientists. Back to Neil... While my post highlighted many who were better qualified, I actually see him to have been the BEST CHOICE. He was an amazing human being. And Mike Collin's book Carrying the Fire goes a long way toward explaining why Neil was the best choice. So let's dispense with the revisionist history. Learn from mistakes that were made. And that will be the best way to avoid repeating them in the future.
@@dahawk8574 I said this was my nickle, my opinion. Shoot the messenger, heck I'm trying to tell you that by throwing shade like this and not signing the shot you don't prove anything. Where are the revisionist history points I made, where was I wrong? If I made a mistake, I'm happy to learn. Stay relevant. Quit making assumptions. So, you're. a space history buff... so what. I didn't claim to be doing a definitive history of Neil Armstrong, or his peers. Since you don't like the video I made... do one yourself, I'd love to see it. But don't waste my time anonymous. If you don't have the courage to sign your shot with your real name everything else you say is worthless.
@@FlyWirescottperdue "...where was I wrong?" If you want the complete list, here it is: 2:21 - "retro rockets" Retro rockets are used to de-orbit. Firing in the retrograde direction, opposing your velocity vector. Accurate: attitude control thruster (a roll thruster). 2:24 - The reason the situation became life threatening is because he made the error of undocking. When it is your error that puts you into grave danger, you are not a hero for getting out of it. 2:36 - Attitude thrusters do not alter a spacecraft trajectory. Only it's attitude. Hence the name. 2:40 - Death would not happen by "skipping off into space". They're already in space. And as previously stated, the situation was not one where their trajectory was at issue. 2:47 - Checklist procedure would walk you through eliminating the problem being on your spacecraft, not over on the Agena side. Only after that would you undock. Dave Scott shut down the Agena thrusters. The problem did not go away. So it should have been obvious to both that THEY were the one with the stuck thruster. Neil unlocked anyway. 3:23 - LLTV, not LLRV. Both LLRVs were modified into LLTVs prior to any astronaut flying them for the purpose of training. Yet again, hence the name. 3:24 - Just watch the film and see how much time he had under canopy to know that "a tenth of a second" is hyperbole. 4:44 - The Eagle was NOT "going too fast". It had a navigation downrange error only. It is akin to sliding the map over to the west. Nothing to do with any velocity error. After low key, Neil intentionally input a high velocity, only for the purpose of picking his landing site. 5:47 - "he gets an alert that the velocity is still too high." I have no idea where you got this idea. Horizontal Velocity being pegged does not necessarily mean too high. It's just beyond what the gauge can read. Like those 80s cars where the speedo pegged at 85. You can still be perfectly safe driving 90. No big deal. 6:07 - "somewhere between 20 and 30 seconds of fuel". As with your car, you do not run out of gas the instant the needle touches 'E'. The gauge has a built in margin. Neil was well aware of this. As with everyone in the MOCR. Armstrong had enough fuel remaining to hover for roughly 70-to-85 more seconds before touching down. This goes back to your previous assertion... 5:39 - "The abort point is 300 feet." 70+ seconds of hover could have instead been used to go 100% on the throttle to initiate abort. So he actually could have landed, and then done an immediate abort initiation. Plenty of fuel remaining to do that. Or abort anywhere in between. 6:00 - Lunar dust in a vacuum does NOT flow "like water". Each particle flies straight, without interacting with each other. Vacuum is an extremely strange environment. Unlike anything we experience on Earth. 6:29 - "beyond the abort point." No. Again, you could land and immediately take right back off and abort, if you wanted. No one talks about this, because it would be a silly thing to do. Yet it was within the LM's capability. Kind of like a bolter on other Grumman vehicles. 6:45 - "smoothest landing" Of the six, yes, he did have the lowest sink rate. But he touched down with the 2nd HIGHEST horizontal velocity. So it's a stretch to credit him with the best landing. Arguably one of the worst. Dave Scott on 15 had the diciest touchdown parameters. So we can objectively say Neil's was not the worst. You're absolutely free to pick anyone you want as the best. But facts are facts. And we aren't at liberty to change that.
I forgot this one: 5:03 - "He had memorized different mountain ranges and craters..." The Sea of Tranquility was picked as the first landing site because it was the flattest, most boring, patch on the Moon. They specifically wanted to eliminate dicey undulations from the entire task. So Armstrong had no mountain ranges anywhere in the vicinity. They saved that until _after_ Apollo 12, when Pete Conrad proved they could accomplish landing at a precision point. (Surveyor 3.)
Bob Hoover’s “energy management” ,performing aerobatics with both engines off to a landing and taxi back....without restarting, was the most amazing flying I’ve ever seen.
Same here. Lots of great pilots, but what separated Bob from the rest, in my opinion, is that he made it look so easy and was so smooth.
I heard the story when he flew his yellow p-51 at an airshow and his harness broke while he was inverted!
To watch him do that show with a non aerobatic twin commander was the only reason i used to go to oshgosh. After watching his performance you might as well leave because everything else looked second rate.
@@marlinweekley51 I’m not quite that harsh on the others as I really enjoyed many other aerobatic pilots and the Birds and Angels never disappointed, but from a pure pilot skill perspective, I don’t think anyone topped Bob. He was just so smooth and precise. I’ve always used Bob as my role model for how to fly as an instrument rated private pilot.
@@LTVoyager ok Blue Angel u bet. I would fly my family to Jack Edwards and drive over to watch BA practice on tuesdays - never got tired of watch them 😀 but to be honest I could only watch an over powered Pitts (etc) do x number of spins before it became a little underwhelming - I’ll also make exception for the Red Bull helicopter 😆
"you're lookin at 'em!" 😁
Another great video Scott. Neil made a career out of pulling the fat from the fire. He also flew the X-15, once overshooting Edwards to the point of having to consider landing at LAX. But he barely cleared the mountain range and made a lake bed instead. I’m sure he shined in training also and his experience on Gemini eight, the LLRV, the X 15, and training no doubt got him a seat Apollo 11. He was pretty cool under fire.
A couple of small corrections. The best estimate is that he landed with about 17 seconds of fuel remaining. They couldn’t tell from the gauges, which like most cars and aircraft, aren’t that super accurate when the tanks are low. They calculated the remaining fuel after the flight by integrating the thrust levels and burn times on strip charts. During the flight itself they had a guy visually integrate the charts and give his best estimates of fuel remaining. That’s where the 60 and 30 second callouts come from during descent.
They overshot the landing zone because they had not released the air pressure in the tunnel between the two spacecraft. When they separated the lunar lander got a little kick from that pressure, and that put them several miles down range.
You were correct that the primary crew, Neil and Buzz, had not practiced the computer program alarms in the simulator prior to flight. But the controllers and back up crew had. About a week before the flight the simulation managers realized they had never practiced computer failures so they ran some additional simulations with the controllers and back up crew. During one such simulation the back up crew aborted a landing because of those alarms, and the simulation managers pointed out that the abort was the wrong decision because those particular alarms were not critical. As a result, the flight controllers put together a small notebook (a QRM) of computer alarms and proper reactions. They referred to that notebook when the alarms flashed and allowed the crew to continue. If you listen carefully to the flight controllers when the alarms go off you will hear Charlie Dukes (the LM communicator) say “just like the one we had“ . He was referring to that sim.
The reason that the computer alarms went off in the first place was because the computer was overloaded. Buzz Aldrin was known as Dr. Rendezvous. He had received a PhD in orbital mechanics specializing in orbital rendezvous and that helped get him into the space program.The check list said that, during descent, the rendezvous radar should not be turned on. But Buzz had other ideas. As Dr. Rendezvous, he wanted to make sure the computer knew where to point the spacecraft in case they aborted, so he threw the switch that left the rendezvous radar on. Some say it was a mistake, but he has admitted to doing it intentionally. While the little 8 bit, 16 KB computer was managing lunar lander systems, flying the landing sequence, and interpreting landing radar, it got overloaded by the rendezvous radar hunting for the command module. It also knew, based on the phase of flight that it was in, which operations to drop if it got overloaded. Which is why it was not a threat to the landing. It simply flashed the alarm and quit computing the rendezvous calculations. And the controllers new, as a result of the simulation and a hand written QRM, what to do.
What is it you always say? Practice practice practice!
Thanks for filling in the story!
You keep blowing me away, man. I've heard tales of Armstrong's achievements since I was a kid...but never with such passion, respect and awe...and you hit it all right in the bullseye. Always be learning, and learn from the best. Learn from your mistakes and theirs...and learn from your successes...and theirs. Those were the biggest damned tufts I ever saw but holy cow...talk about fascinating. Nothing like real time experimentation to turn theory into reality right before your eyes. Thanks for doing what you do. You have a knack.
Watching these channels is very useful and important, we also in the Navy said If you aint Cheatin you aint trying. I love this Channel like listening to my Dad and I miss him lots. LCDR James R. Goggin USN
as a guy who is not yet a pilot, it seems that a constant theme of yours is knowledge and practice is good, and more knowledge and more practice is better. I will keep this in mind as I (hopefully) start my pilot training over the next year. Keep up the good work.
As flight is such a dynamic condition, I think the best pilots never stop training, plan their flights carefully, live in the moment of the flight as it progresses, and never give up when things inevitably go wrong.
Scott, Neil was darn good, to say the least. But the best of the best was my dad, Stan Kakol, Chief Test Pilot for Bell Aerosystems on the X-22A project. I wouldn't be a good test pilot's son if I didn't believe that!!
Thanks for sharing!
Love it.......”don’t panic, practice instead”. Great words to live by. Thanks Scott!
Well done Scott! Thanks.
Excellent !!! We'll said: PRACTICE !
Scott , former fighter pilot here. Thanks for sharing this vídeo. It is full of aeronautical insights and a good starter for a flight safety presentation.good job !
Hi Scott, I am a new subscriber to your wonderful channel.
I must say your discussions, analysis and storytelling is so interesting. Keep up the fantastic work, I am really enjoying going through the older videos. Take care, and best regards, Rob from Durban, South Africa.
Such a wealth of knowledge
I had a ground school (pilot) instructor who used to tell us “There are bold pilots & old pilots, but very few old, bold pilots”. This was very good & I watched the moon landing for real. I was 20.
Just suscribed... 55 years of flying, retired now, and enjoy your videos on important subjects in aviation...thanks !!
Fantastic Video .... Thank You ✨🇺🇸💫
8:10 "The air force doesn't believe in sweating" Ha! Nice one!
Thank You again for a great video. As I rejoin the World of aviation, I don't want to be that 18 year old kid, arrogant, and fearless. I realize how many times I could have been killed and killed others through stupidity and lack of preparedness. I am embarrassed that I didn't put in the work and grateful that I ran out of money and couldn't be a hazard to myself or others at a more tender age. I practice constantly. I go up with an instructor regularly. I watch these videos every chance I get, and try to keep the game in front of me. I also realize improving my odds means an appropriate aircraft flown in appropriate conditions during appropriate times, and rules out old Monneys and Bonanzas near TBO. For me LSA has the same view and same thrill at 3 gallons per hour with Rotax 912 under 500 hours and a parachute just in-case. and improves my odds. Thanks again love the show!
Thanks William, flying is flying... have fun!
My very first couple of flights , after takeoff, began under the hood and continued almost every flight thereafter, for the ten to fifteen minutes it took us to get to the practice area. John Alves, my CFI, would tap the instrument,to create an appropriate scan pattern for me. This saved my butt as a student when I ,solo at night, was doing TG’s at KIZA, a pocket of Marine layer moved in above me, flew into IMC, went to my training, pulled the power back, descended back to VFR, landing back at KIZA, and took a taxi back to SBA!
Good job! Thanks for sharing your story!
I am reminded of an old joke. A traveler to New York City asks, "How do you get to Carnegie Hall?" The New Yorker answers, "Practice, practice, practice." I thought of this in 1974 during the oil crisis when flying hours were cut and often wondered how many planes and crews were lost because of reduced flying hours. Did we really save money? My thought beside the devastation a family faces when a pilot is killed is that whenever we lose a major or captain with years of experience and many flight hours, this person is replaced with someone fresh out of pilot training. As a former flight surgeon I would add that training applies to many fields with medicine being one near the top. That is why we always talk about the practice of medicine. Thanks for a great video.
Wow, great information..I new Armstrong flew the X planes and I new about the low fuel and the different landing location but the rest just blew me away. Great video.
The Wapakoneta Kid.... Always a Role Model, A Humble Hero. Great Video, Solid Advice. Fly Safe!!
Gotta agree with you on this one Cap'n. Good show, once again.
I absolutely would spend my time with one humble person over being in a crowd of people that are boastful or proud of what they did from sheer luck or otherwise!!! My personal thought on being humble, is it affords you the opportunity to learn and hopefully never experience a bad situation.. Loved your video!! Keep up the great work!!!
[An incredibly humble man] "Much like me." Ha!
Not a pilot.67 yo... Never been in a private plane. Though I wish I had become a pilot and love flying and planes. Have friends that are pilots. I enjoy these videos and the" hanger talk" and think I use the ideas and information in other life activities. Scuba diving, running my 42 foot sport fish and other boats. Fishing of all types. Target shooting. Firearms. Teaching my grand kids what life is about and how to do things well in life without you or your friends that you can influence making the ultimate mistake . Driving a 42' boat 100 miles offshore for multiple days requires planning, weather knowledge, knowledge of systems and on and on and practice of how the hull and propulsion interact with different sea states and weather. We use similar instruments but travel much more slowly. Docking a large boat well especially in wind and current is a little like greasing a landing. Thanks for sharing your knowledge! I enjoy!
Great, Jack thanks for sharing. By the way... it's not to late to fly!
There are others and I agree the seal on his character. His mindset of staying out of the exploiting of publicity speaks to who he was. I was lucky to be friends with another similar person that changed my life during my teen years. I am forever grateful.
Great subject and comments. I encourage anyone who has not seen the landing film to do so. It is quite amazing. Thank your Scott. I learn something from each one of your videos.
As usual, great video and take aways. I could listen to Scott for hours. Thx
Not bad for a kid that started in a Champ! Neil Armstrong, “The Humble Hero” is one of the all time greats. The Apollo 11 landing is among the best pilotage ever performed! Great video! Thanks for putting it together.
Scott - I just found your channel and I am quite impressed. I REALLY like the way you approach things. I find myself shaking my head "YES" virtually all the time.
I feel certain that I was in your top ten for this video (grin), but I understand why Neil beat me out. I remember watching the moon landing on TV just as if it was yesterday.
Keep up your great work!
Thanks Stan!
Bob Hoover who spent years in experimental aircraft he learned how to be a test pilot by working as a depot pilot in WW2 aircraft shipped in by boxes and built by local labor in the middle east he had to fly them. He said it was common to find controls reversed. He said engine, and gear failures were routine this is how he learned to fly aircraft land them without an engine. One of his test flights after the war he flew a German aircraft that had the jet engine intake right above your head you could not climb out when it stalled it fell backwards toward the ground you could not recover. Bob said it was the most dangerous airplane he ever flown.
Know your systems inside and out and know your options concerning terrain. It not only helps you but anyone you can help in an emergency. Do not assume. There's no such thing as never, ever and completely like my dad would say. He's an Orville & Wilbur Wright winner and even wrote a lot of the Hawker 800 manual.
Excellent video. Great attitude that should be adopted by all pilots. Thanks for a terrific, thought-provoking video.
"Who's the best pilot you ever saw?"
-"You're lookin' at him" - The Right Stuff lol
Great info & I watch your channel faithfully. In this vid I missed a bunch of your commentary due to the flight communications in the background. Oh yeah - and thank you for your military service.
Thanks for watching! The Stearman is a noisy airplane, there is no getting around that.
Delmar Benjamin would have to be right up there. Racking up 1500 hours in his Gee Bee R2 over many years puts him at an elite level
1956 cessna 172, my third solo flight in the pattern at kvgt, on extended downwind for rwy 12 L, i pull the cabin air knob all the way out for it was getting hot, nothing dramatic happens, everything still good and normal. a short while later, engine gets quiet, airspeed drops, altitude drops too, I cycle the carb heat which was on-nothing happens, I advance throttle, engine purrs but no thrust gained. I looked over my shoulder to runway which seemed beyond gliding distance due to extended downwind. i got worried, my hormones did their job and increased my heart rate and awareness. i checked fuel-on both. I checked mixture to find it full lean... advanced it full forward and engine came alive. hallelujah. relief. and simply continued the flight for couple more touch and goes. went to my instructors hangar to tell him what had just happened. i pulled mixture full lean when i thought i was pulling the cabin air knob. he said same mistake was done by others since both mixture knob and cabin air knob in this model 172 is black and very similar if not the same. i will never make this mistake again and I feel good about handling my first emergency calmly no matter it was self induced.
Great story, thanks for sharing! And excellent procedure, good on you!
Gunny your stories and attitude are exceptional. Thank you.
What a great video! Thanks again, Scott.
Thanks Scott, top job on that one.
I love history and yes aviation history too, In the Navy we were told the story of a naval aviator during Vietnam had to cut his left arm off in the cockpit to come aboard ship due to combat damage. And yes Neil Armstrong was also Glider Pilot (like me!!) I agree Mr. Armstrong was amazing he must have had THE best instructors.
Talents and Training. Never stop training..
Thanks Scott for sharing your thoughts about Neil Armstrong’s unparalleled ability to mentally process information under extreme pressure and execute. I really enjoy your videos! You’re as comfortable to listen to as my favorite old pair of shoes are to wear.
Thanks, I appreciate that!
Great video, thanks Scott!
I agree,he was a great man,none of us could know what it is like to leave the planet on top of the fastest machine ever made by man then walk on another planet and return home safely to earth, you can't commend or honor this achievement highly enough.
Big BOB ..... in the T.C. ✨🇺🇸💫
Great content. Thanks for sharing !!!
At some point I hope you can fly your Stearman to Pensacola for the Vet flights in July. Great video ! Thx
Can someone explain what was the deal with the single prop at the end with a net entangled? Lol obviously I’m not a pilot but I LOVE THE CHANNEL!!
I enjoy the points you make in the video your knowledge is well worth being shared. At times your on camera commentary audio is lost under the audio of the moon landing accompanying your on camera presentation.
Thanks JJ. I'll try and do better next time!
Well done sir you are a true aviator! Thank you.
"A superb pilot uses his superb judgement so he doesn't have to use his superb ability."
Awesome advice, Thank you
I do agree with your choice - and why. Just one more Neil Armstrong incident - returning after an X-15 flight he lost concentration for a couple of seconds right at the critical re-entry point, and overshot; gathered it together, re-entered at some distance further down the Pacific states and in the descent overshot ‘Frisco and LA. Ground control had written him and / or the aircraft off - they thought he couldn’t make it - but Armstrong glided it westward, lined up with Edwards, and nailed the dead-stick landing - right on the button. Didn’t even have to fold up a ‘chute nor walk to his ride back to the ops centre. Again, it showed his mastery of the aircraft, and followed the well-known adage, “Aviate” (fly it at best glide speed), “Navigate” (follow the curve back to Edwards), and then “Communicate” (he told Edwards he was bringing it home) - and he did!
Thanks, Scott, for such a wonderful, graphic lesson for what we all need to do and think about.
Thanks Warwick!
New pilot here. I CRAVE this guidance. Thank you Scott.
Keep learning! It is one thing that makes flying fun!
Great subject matter, Scott. Keep up the good work👍🏼
I like your videos, keep it up! I am a somewhat recent A36 owner. I bought it about 9 months ago and love it (about 45-50 hours in type). I would love to see you make a video on crosswind landings in the A36. Thanks for what you have been doing.
Rocket- Thanks. Congrats on the new A36, wonderful airplane! Crosswind Landings are an excellent idea, I'll add them to the list1
Good point on the speed / stall relationship. Get comfortable with the stall and it’ll be a non issue when it happens accidentally. Just gotta get to know your plane.
Amen Brother... Practice is fun!
I believe the 1202 alarm was caused by Buzz Aldrin who left the rendezvous radar on in case the mission needed to be aborted (contrary to procedure). Only the landing radar was supposed to be on during landing. The extra computations caused the computer to run out of time.
You are correct.
Great video!
Nice job Scott
Now they have computers that will do all that stuff...super interesting video...the video title doesn’t do it any justice!
Thanks DJ!
Thank you.
Good stuff there. Thanks!
Mark- Thanks! Missed you at Osh this year.
@@FlyWirescottperdue best Hollywood landing I ever saw. How did they get through the Vanallen radiation belt? Serious question, why haven't we've been there since. I think the evidence proves it was fake.
Does anyone know who checked Neil Armstrong out in gliders? Was it Dick ????? From Waller Texas ?
Can’t disagree or argue against Armstrong as the best…but Jimmy Doolittle wasn’t too shabby.
Doolittle was a great pilot, but excelled at leadership! Armstrong didn’t.
B.H... then C.Y... when the great aviators say Bob Hoover was the best....good enough for me.
@ 2:55 WTF was that ….I’ve never seen that footage before 👀
I landed with 20 minutes fuel remaining once, but never 20 seconds! A close second to Neil Armstrong would be Jim Lovell. Watch Apollo 13, or better yet read the book Lost Moon. More extraordinary aeronautical decision making!
+1 about Neil Scott
Gordon Cooper 😉
Best Pilot ever is Gene McNealy who has flown the t6 at Reno for years and with the Aero Shell Team as well. For a Space Driver my pick is Pete Conrad. But truth is….most of the guys that flew into space were at the top of the game. ON 11…people don’t give Buzz enough credit for the landing…Buzz and Neal worked like one to get the Eagle on the moon. It was not a one man landing was my point. Enjoy your work…thank you.
Two things I learned:
- how bad ass Neil Armstrong was (I never knew, specifically)
- HOW BAD ASS those tell tails on the Beechcraft are! Neato! The full length ones sure do visually have greater impact than the little ones!
James E. Lynne, Jim Ross, and of course Bob Hoover in my lifetime...and I Imagine nobody knows the first two.
During the Apollo 11 debrief, Neil took a little bit of flack for his decision to override the LM autopilot and burn so close to abort fuel. His response was something that all pilots should bring to their aviating:
"As spacecraft commander, I reserve my God-given right to be wishy-washy."
Scott, What area are you based out of? Love the content!!! Thank you!
Eddie, Thanks! I live southwest of Fort Worth, Texas and the A36 is a perfect way to get around these fantastic United States!
Train like your life depends on it, cause it does.
Scott, I'd like to encourage you to work on your delivery. You tend to mumble, slur your words, and speak rapidly. This sometimes makes it hard to follow your interesting content. Thank you.
With the greatest of respect , I agree. It wont stop me watching, but I too want to encourage you, Scott.
Scott, I listen to you with headphones. I need to because my hearing is getting worse as I age. I learn a lot from your vlogs, but I do miss some because your speech is not very distinct at times, even with headsets. It would help to talk slower and/or enunciate more clearly. That's all and thanks.
Super teacher. Listening wearing my hearing aids:-)
Naturally... Before he was an Astronaut -- He was a NAVY Pilot!
Armstrong was a great human being and a great pilot. But, he was the best pilot you ever saw? What about so many of the best airshow pilots? They are incredibly skilled. Sean Tucker, Skip Stewart, Bob Herendeen, Jim LeRoy, Bobby Younkin, Jimmy Franklin, Art Scholl, Leo Loudenslager, etc. These are the best pilots I have seen in person.
Good air show pilots, sure, maybe even the best. But that doesn’t necessarily make the grade of Best overall.
Stories be told it was Ted Williams the Hall of Fame Baseball player.....his eyesight rivaled birds of prey.
In the end its all about proficiency….but you know that.
If only American business mgmt applied the same principles, rigor and focus. Employees would be infinitely more productive, innovative and valuable team members to collective and individual growth.
Speed IS a crutch. A lot of kids and new pilots in our RC club could never fly my old beat up clunker that I fly and love. Their salvation is more power and up elevator. They have learned to fly the motor rather than the airplane. The old clunker is like flying a 60 HP cub that has a worn out engine. Fly safe.
Can't argue with Armstrong but I'm a west Virginia boy and there is only one choice for best Chuck Yeager true American Hillbilly Hero
Not to mention X-15 flights...
So the reason we never went back: We never got a 2nd Neil Armstrong.
you hit the nail on the head ,nothing much learned flying A to B with your hair on fire ,slow down ,right down and explore your aeroplane in and just off the stall is what we should be advising ,NOT carry another 5 Kts for mother .
How? I'd say Finesse...........
And focus!
@@FlyWirescottperdue .... I worked on the flight-deck of the USS America during the '6 Day War', I should have got that! Navy Pilots were the best at both in my book.................thank you for all you do for Aviation and for us ground-huggers
Undocking Gemini 8 with a stuck thruster was Pilot Error. Flying your Panther into a wire was Pilot Error. Flying the X-15 out of the flight profile was Pilot Error. Getting your T-33 stuck in a muddy lakebed was Pilot Error. Ejection from the LLTV was an avoidable error. 1202 and 1201 alarms were LM Pilot error. Of the 3 aboard Apollo 11, Armstrong had the LEAST spaceflight experience. Aldrin had an aerospace doctorate. Armstrong had a bachelor's. Collins was a TPS grad. Armstrong never attended any test pilot school (not until the 1970s, AFTER he got back from the Moon). Every other spaceflight commander throughout Mercury, all throughout Gemini, right up until the end of Apollo was a TPS graduate. Not him.
One approach to history is to remember it accurately. Not to distort it.
Compare:
"Ringo isn't the best drummer in the world. He isn't even the best drummer in the Beatles."
Arguments could likewise be made that both Aldrin and Collins were better qualified to command Apollo 11, with either of them being the one to take that First Step. Schirra, Stafford, Young, Conrad and Lovell likewise had FAR MORE spaceflight experience than Armstrong. (Let alone others like Gordon and Cernan.)
If you set the criteria for the astronaut to do that first landing by selecting the one with the most experience, having made the least near-fatal errors, there were PLENTY ahead of Neil Armstrong.
Let's try to maintain clear perspective on why Neil was chosen. It was NOT because he was the most experienced astronaut who had made the fewest errors.
Neil Armstrong, the best pilot you ever saw? A strong argument can be made that he was not even in the top half of his astronaut class (behind Young, Conrad, Lovell and Stafford, with McDivitt and Borman likewise having loads more spaceflight experience than him). Nor the best choice within his own crew. Along with having far more spaceflight experience and far more education, Buzz had also shot down two MiGs in Korea. Where Neil flew ground attack, and ejected after flying into an obstacle he failed to see and avoid.
So, not a fan. The 1201/1202 alarms were because Aldrin left the radar on. Nice try on that. Time in Space is not a measure of ability, surviving a stressful, possibly fatal event with a cool head may be just slightly more important than time in a chair. . Elaborate on the errors you point out. Just saying the words mean nothing. Sign your shot next time. Throwing spears and hiding behind a pseudonym is bogus. Thanks for watching!
@@FlyWirescottperdue
I am a HUGE fan of Neil Armstrong. What I am advocating here is remembering history accurately.
1202/1201 - I stated that it was the LM Pilot's fault. You say 'Buzz' as though you're offering a correction.
Neil never flew the LLRV. He flew the LLTV. And those who read my words carefully there can see I did not fault him for that error either. Yet, it was completely avoidable.
Facts are facts, regardless of who asserts them. I understand your desire to shoot the messenger, bit if you see clipping your wing off on a ground wire to be an example of exceptional piloting skill, then I will simply beg to differ. You just swept that one under the rug, as you did with his mess with Yeager. I, however, have offered the full picture. For anyone who thinks undocking was a good call, I recommend looking into the proper procedure.
As for heroes of mine screwing up, the biggest example is probably Gene Cernan flying his chopper straight into the Banana River while showboating for some bikini chicks. Talk about embarrassing. Yet Deke assigned him to Apollo 17 anyway. He, by the way, was the only other non-TPS grad given a NASA command. Him and Neil. Only ones throughout the entire program. One other exception early in Shuttle. And when he screwed the pooch on his landing, that was the end of it. TPS then became mandatory.
The most curious thing about 17 is that NO ONE on that flight had ever been to TPS. So you could say that this last Moon landing was an operational flight. The one heavily experienced test pilot got booted off that mission. By insistence of the National Academy of Scientists.
Back to Neil...
While my post highlighted many who were better qualified, I actually see him to have been the BEST CHOICE. He was an amazing human being. And Mike Collin's book Carrying the Fire goes a long way toward explaining why Neil was the best choice.
So let's dispense with the revisionist history. Learn from mistakes that were made. And that will be the best way to avoid repeating them in the future.
@@dahawk8574 I said this was my nickle, my opinion. Shoot the messenger, heck I'm trying to tell you that by throwing shade like this and not signing the shot you don't prove anything. Where are the revisionist history points I made, where was I wrong? If I made a mistake, I'm happy to learn. Stay relevant. Quit making assumptions. So, you're. a space history buff... so what. I didn't claim to be doing a definitive history of Neil Armstrong, or his peers. Since you don't like the video I made... do one yourself, I'd love to see it. But don't waste my time anonymous. If you don't have the courage to sign your shot with your real name everything else you say is worthless.
@@FlyWirescottperdue "...where was I wrong?"
If you want the complete list, here it is:
2:21 - "retro rockets"
Retro rockets are used to de-orbit. Firing in the retrograde direction, opposing your velocity vector.
Accurate: attitude control thruster (a roll thruster).
2:24 - The reason the situation became life threatening is because he made the error of undocking. When it is your error that puts you into grave danger, you are not a hero for getting out of it.
2:36 - Attitude thrusters do not alter a spacecraft trajectory. Only it's attitude. Hence the name.
2:40 - Death would not happen by "skipping off into space". They're already in space. And as previously stated, the situation was not one where their trajectory was at issue.
2:47 - Checklist procedure would walk you through eliminating the problem being on your spacecraft, not over on the Agena side. Only after that would you undock.
Dave Scott shut down the Agena thrusters. The problem did not go away. So it should have been obvious to both that THEY were the one with the stuck thruster. Neil unlocked anyway.
3:23 - LLTV, not LLRV. Both LLRVs were modified into LLTVs prior to any astronaut flying them for the purpose of training. Yet again, hence the name.
3:24 - Just watch the film and see how much time he had under canopy to know that "a tenth of a second" is hyperbole.
4:44 - The Eagle was NOT "going too fast". It had a navigation downrange error only. It is akin to sliding the map over to the west. Nothing to do with any velocity error.
After low key, Neil intentionally input a high velocity, only for the purpose of picking his landing site.
5:47 - "he gets an alert that the velocity is still too high."
I have no idea where you got this idea. Horizontal Velocity being pegged does not necessarily mean too high. It's just beyond what the gauge can read. Like those 80s cars where the speedo pegged at 85. You can still be perfectly safe driving 90. No big deal.
6:07 - "somewhere between 20 and 30 seconds of fuel".
As with your car, you do not run out of gas the instant the needle touches 'E'. The gauge has a built in margin. Neil was well aware of this. As with everyone in the MOCR. Armstrong had enough fuel remaining to hover for roughly 70-to-85 more seconds before touching down. This goes back to your previous assertion...
5:39 - "The abort point is 300 feet."
70+ seconds of hover could have instead been used to go 100% on the throttle to initiate abort. So he actually could have landed, and then done an immediate abort initiation. Plenty of fuel remaining to do that. Or abort anywhere in between.
6:00 - Lunar dust in a vacuum does NOT flow "like water". Each particle flies straight, without interacting with each other. Vacuum is an extremely strange environment. Unlike anything we experience on Earth.
6:29 - "beyond the abort point."
No.
Again, you could land and immediately take right back off and abort, if you wanted. No one talks about this, because it would be a silly thing to do. Yet it was within the LM's capability. Kind of like a bolter on other Grumman vehicles.
6:45 - "smoothest landing"
Of the six, yes, he did have the lowest sink rate. But he touched down with the 2nd HIGHEST horizontal velocity. So it's a stretch to credit him with the best landing. Arguably one of the worst. Dave Scott on 15 had the diciest touchdown parameters. So we can objectively say Neil's was not the worst.
You're absolutely free to pick anyone you want as the best.
But facts are facts. And we aren't at liberty to change that.
I forgot this one:
5:03 - "He had memorized different mountain ranges and craters..."
The Sea of Tranquility was picked as the first landing site because it was the flattest, most boring, patch on the Moon. They specifically wanted to eliminate dicey undulations from the entire task. So Armstrong had no mountain ranges anywhere in the vicinity.
They saved that until _after_ Apollo 12, when Pete Conrad proved they could accomplish landing at a precision point. (Surveyor 3.)