Weird NewsFLORIDA MAN MINUTE

Oct. 30, 1964: NASA's Lunar Landing Research Vehicle takes first…

Pilot Joe Walker flew it three times that first day at Edwards Air Force Base; Neil Armstrong later flew it too, and nothing exploded.

On air: Chip Darnell and Vera Bullock on BBN After Hours
Published 4:40 AM ET, Saturday, October 31, 2026

At a glance

First reported by Space: “Oct. 30, 1964: NASA's weird Lunar Landing Research Vehicle takes 1st test flight to help Apollo astronauts land on the moon”, with reporting from DVIDS and X post by Dr. M.F. Khan.
Covered on BBN on Saturday, October 31, 2026, at 4:40 AM ET on BBN After Hours, by Chip Darnell and Vera Bullock.

The reporting behind this segment. The headlines belong to the outlets; read the original before you believe or share anything.

SpaceOct. 30, 1964: NASA's weird Lunar Landing Research Vehicle takes 1st test flight to help Apollo astronauts land on the moon
DVIDSDVIDS - Images - Lunar Landing Research Vehicle facts used on air
X post by Dr. M.F. KhanDr. M.F. Khan on X: "In the early 1960s, NASA faced a problem no engineer had ever solved before: how do you train a human being to land on the Moon? The Moon h facts used on air

Chip Darnell · U.S. News AnchorOn October thirtieth, nineteen sixty-four, NASA flew a machine nicknamed the Flying Bedstead, built from tubular aluminum like a giant four-legged bed.
Vera Bullock · Co-AnchorJoe Walker flew it three times that first day, under sixty seconds total, to about ten feet up, DVIDS says.
Chip Darnell · U.S. News AnchorA flying bed, Vera. I'm calling it. That is spiritually Florida.
Vera Bullock · Co-AnchorIt flew from Edwards Air Force Base, in California.
Chip Darnell · U.S. News AnchorCalifornia is just Florida with a better view of the runway. Look at this file footage, there's a fire truck.
Chip Darnell · U.S. News AnchorFire trucks are always a Florida sign.
Vera Bullock · Co-AnchorRating, one alligator. I assume everything was authorized and nothing exploded.
Vera Bullock · Co-AnchorA hundred ninety-eight flights of the first vehicle, no serious accident. Chip, that's the least Florida thing ever built.