Editing Apollo 10 (section)

== Aftermath ==
Orbital operations and the solo maneuvering of the LM in partial descent to the lunar surface paved the way for the successful Apollo 11 lunar landing by demonstrating the capabilities of the mission hardware and systems. The crew demonstrated that the checkout procedures of the LM and initial descent and rendezvous could be accomplished within the allotted time, that the communication systems of the LM were sufficient, that the rendezvous and landing radars of the LM were operational in lunar orbit, and that the two spacecraft could be adequately monitored by personnel on Earth. Additionally, the precision of lunar orbital navigation improved with Apollo 10 and, combined with data from Apollo 8, NASA expected that it had achieved a level of precision sufficient to execute the first crewed lunar landing.{{sfn|Orloff|2004|pp=72–79}} After about two weeks of Apollo 10 data analysis, a NASA flight readiness team cleared Apollo 11 to proceed with its scheduled July 1969 flight.<ref>{{Cite magazine |last=Dorminey |first=Bruce |date=May 19, 2019 |title=Apollo 10 Gave NASA The Chutzpah To Meet JFK's Lunar Challenge |url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/brucedorminey/2019/05/19/apollo-10-gave-nasa-the-chutzpah-to-meet-jfks-lunar-challenge/?sh=f8b5c41ccf26 |access-date=July 2, 2022 |magazine=[[Forbes]]}}</ref> On July 16, 1969, the next Saturn V to launch carried the astronauts of Apollo 11: [[Neil Armstrong]], [[Buzz Aldrin]], and [[Michael Collins (astronaut)|Michael Collins]]. On July 20, Armstrong and Aldrin landed on the Moon, and four days later the three astronauts returned to Earth, fulfilling [[John F. Kennedy]]'s challenge to Americans to land astronauts on the Moon and return them safely to Earth by the end of the 1960s.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Apollo 11 Mission Overview |url=https://www.lpi.usra.edu/lunar/missions/apollo/apollo_11/ |access-date=July 28, 2022 |publisher=Lunar and Planetary Institute}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Stamm |first=Amy |date=July 17, 2019 |title='We Choose to Go to the Moon' and Other Apollo Speeches |url=https://airandspace.si.edu/stories/editorial/we-choose-go-moon-and-other-apollo-speeches |access-date=July 28, 2022 |publisher=[[National Air and Space Museum]]}}</ref>

In July 1969, Stafford replaced [[Alan Shepard]] as [[Chief Astronaut]], and then became deputy director of Flight Crew Operations under Deke Slayton.<ref name="drew" /> In his memoirs, Stafford wrote that he could have put his name back in the flight rotation, but wanted managerial experience.{{sfn|Stafford & Cassutt|p=469}} In 1972, Stafford was promoted to [[brigadier general]] and assigned to command the American portion of the [[Apollo–Soyuz Test Project]], which flew in July 1975. He commanded the [[Air Force Flight Test Center]] at [[Edwards Air Force Base]] in California, and retired in November 1979 as a [[lieutenant general]]. Young commanded the [[Apollo 16]] lunar landing mission flown in April 1972. From 1974 to 1987, Young served as Chief Astronaut, commanding the [[STS-1]] (1981) and [[STS-9]] (1983) Space Shuttle missions in April 1981 and November 1983, respectively, and retired from NASA's Astronaut Corps in 2004. Gene Cernan commanded the final Apollo lunar mission, Apollo 17, flown in December 1972. Cernan retired from NASA and the Navy as a [[Captain (United States O-6)|captain]] in 1976.<ref name="drew">{{Cite web |last=LaPage |first=Andrew |date=May 29, 2019 |title=Apollo 10: The Adventure of Charlie Brown and Snoopy |url=https://www.drewexmachina.com/2019/05/29/apollo-10-the-adventure-of-charlie-brown-snoopy// |access-date=July 11, 2022 |website=Drew ex Machina |type=Blog}}</ref><ref name="Neal" />{{sfn|French & Burgess|p=1397}}