Both the United States and the Soviet Union had many problems during the Moon race. The Soviet Union had the first in-flight death in 1967, only 3 months after the Apollo 1 fire. According to NASA, most of the accomplishments first made by the Soviets were also made by the US within a year. By 1965, the US started to beat the Soviets to a few important steps. The Soviets had never developed a rocket which could land on the Moon, and they never tested landing on the Moon with an astronaut on board. "