Below the Beltway and Captain's Quarters both note that today is the 40th anniversary of the Apollo 1 fire. It took the lives of three astronauts: Virgil "Gus" Grissom, Ed White, and Roger Chaffee.
My first real memories of the space program came later with Apollo 7 and successive launches. As a 7 -1/2 year old by then, I sat in awe as I watched Apollo's 7 through 11 culminate with a landing on the moon. Without the bravery and sacrifice of it's predecessors, Apollo 11 would have never have seen it's mission fulfilled.
Captain Ed puts it best: "There were many reasons the Apollo I accident should not have happened, but Grissom, White, and Chaffee knew that the job was dangerous and did it anyway. They should rightly be remembered as American heroes."
-Colonel Steve
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