July 16th 1969, the day when three men braved the unknown, taking their places inside Apollo 11 to be propelled into space.
Before Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin and Michael Collins took on this daring act, however, the first hurdle for them to tackle was somewhat less glitzy – life insurance.
Unsurprisingly the cost of insuring the life of someone who is venturing to the moon is sky high. At the time, NASA were forbidden from paying the astronaut’s life insurance premiums, and although their pay checks were rather good, they wouldn’t come close to covering the costs. Each of these men had loved ones that they wanted to be able to provide for should the worst happen, but thankfully what these men were about to do meant that they were to become figures in history, making them famous! And this provided the solution…
Right to left: Armstrong, Collins, Aldrin
What did they do that was so interesting?
After it was announced they were to be astronauts, effectively becoming famous overnight, there was great demand for their autographs, which gave the three adventurers an idea for how to resolve this life insurance problem.
In the months that lead up to the big day, Neil, Buzz and Michael signed hundreds of documents, 214 of which were signed by the entire crew and had enough room left on them to write a personalised message to the recipient. The documents were given to a close friend, who took them to be stamped on important days, such as the launch day, and the day that they all landed on the moon.
These were then handed out to the astronauts’ families, and – since they were extremely valuable to collectors – became virtual currency, since if the worst happened, the three families could sell the autographs and recoup a significant pay-out. Fortunately, the autographs were not needed in the end; as all three men returned home in good health and went on to live full lives.
These days even life insurance for astronauts is easier to come, by so innovative schemes like this are rarely required, but that doesn’t mean you should undertake such a mission if you’re not an expert on the subject. Why not let the staff of Key Protect take the risk out of life insurance and give them a call on 0844 809 4897, or visit www.keyhealthpartnership.com and request a call back today
