OFFICIAL CONTRACTOR LUNAR LANDER MODEL, ISSUED BY THE SPACECRAFT BUILDER GRUMMAN

OFFICIAL CONTRACTOR LUNAR LANDER MODEL

ISSUED BY THE SPACECRAFT BUILDER GRUMMAN

Model of the Lunar Module (LM) made from injected-molded plastic for the Grumman Aircraft Engineering Corporation (GAEC) of Bethpage, Long Island, NY. GAEC was the prime NASA contractor for the LM. The model stands 7 inches tall with four metal landing legs approximately 8 inches apart. The upper Ascent Stage is detachable from the lower Descent Stage. The complete model is removable from a 10 ½ inch circular base which has NASA and Grumman logos and the wording: "LUNAR MODULE."

The LM made one unmanned and one manned earth orbital flight and carried out eight manned lunar missions of which six landed on the moon. The vehicle served as a “life boat” during the Apollo 13 mission after the Service Module explosion. An emergency firing of its descent engine put Apollo 13 on a safe trajectory back to Earth and the vehicles oxygen system kept the crew alive during that time.