What The Apollo 11 Crew Did For Life Insurance

Back in 1969 insurance companies weren't very optimistic about the odds of an astronaut making it back to earth after being launched in a rocket to the moon. The cost of life insurance for the Apollo 11 crew was astronomically high so they came up with a clever solution. A month before launch, the astronauts signed hundreds of autographs that were to be sold if they didn't make it back. From the article: "About a month before Apollo 11 was set to launch, the three astronauts entered quarantine. And, during free moments in the following weeks, each of the astronauts signed hundreds of covers. They gave them to a friend. And on important days — the day of the launch, the day the astronauts landed on the moon — their friend got them to the post office and got them postmarked, and then distributed them to the astronauts' families. It was life insurance in the form of autographs."

Comments

Re:Its kind of really sad

[Anonymous Coward]

If that group of people didn't want to take the risk, they could have stepped back. There would have been no shortage of applicants to replace them. If an astronaut with a family is not insurable, then perhaps people with families that depend on them shouldn't ride into space on tons of rocket fuel.

Re:If the odds are against you

[Anonymous Coward]

bet against yourself?

This is the entire crux of life insurance anyway.

You buy life insurance because your wager is that you're going to die at any moment

Insurance companies wager that you're not going to die for a very long time...or at least long enough to rake in a decent profit.