The Apollo 7 crew aboard the U.S.S. Essex, the prime recovery
ship for the mission. From left to right: Walter M. Schirra Jr.,
commander; Donn F. Eisele, command module pilot; Walter
Cunningham, lunar module pilot The crew is pausing in the
doorway of the recovery helicopter.

Apollo 7, launched on October 11th, was the first mission in the United
State’s Apollo program to carry a crew into space. It was also the first
American space flight to carry astronauts into low-Earth orbit after a
cabin fire killed the Apollo 1 crew in 1967. This was the final manned
launch from Cape Kennedy Air Force Station.

Despite tension between the crew and ground controllers, the mission
was a complete technical success, It landed in the North Atlantic Ocean
after its 11-day flight.