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On October 11, 1968, the Apollo 7 mission launched from Cape Kennedy bound for low-Earth orbit to test the Apollo command and service module. It was the first of the famous Apollo series,
which would eventually put the first man – Neil Armstrong – on the Moon. However, things did not go how NASA had planned under the command of Walter M. Schirra and pilots Donn F. Eisele and
R. Walter Cunningham. Amazon Prime’s “NASA: A Journey Through Space” revealed how the mission unfolded. The series said in 2016: “Apollo 7 included both a command and a service module,
without the addition of a lunar module. “Because of this, they launched from a smaller Saturn 1B rocket. “Compared to the Gemini, the flight was much smoother, and Apollo 7 included the
first live television broadcast from space. “It also allowed the three astronauts the luxury of having hot meals, yet issues raised.” The documentary went on to reveal how the crew on board
outright ignored Mission Control. It added: “One issue was with Schirra, who had already decided to retire from NASA after this flight. “The astronauts also all develop head colds and
generally grow quite irritable. READ MORE: APOLLO 11 ASTRONAUT'S MOON LANDING CONFESSION EXPOSED: 'PUT IT ON MY GRAVESTONE!' “Wally Schirra was the only astronaut to have
flown on Mercury, Gemini and Apollo flights. “He went on to pursue other ventures after NASA, while Eisele and Cunningham would never go to space again, allegedly for insubordination. “For
Schirra, he felt that NASA had lost its way.” After the mission, NASA awarded Mr Schirra, Mr Eisele, and Mr Cunningham its Exceptional Service Medal in recognition of their success. On
November 2, 1968, President Lyndon Johnson held a ceremony at the LBJ Ranch in Johnson City, Texas, to present the astronauts with the awards. He also presented NASA's highest honour,
the Distinguished Service Medal, to recently retired NASA administrator James E. Webb, for his "outstanding leadership of America's space programme" since the beginning of
Apollo. Mr Schirra, Mr Eisele, and Mr Cunningham were the only crew, of all the Apollo missions, who had not been awarded the Distinguished Service Medal immediately following their
missions. However, NASA administrator Michael D. Griffin decided to belatedly award the medals to the crew in October 2008 “for exemplary performance in meeting all the Apollo 7 mission
objectives and more on the first crewed Apollo mission, paving the way for the first flight to the Moon on Apollo 8 and the first crewed lunar landing on Apollo 11."