Neil Armstrong and made his first flight in a jet, a Grumman F9F Panther, on January 5, 1951. He was promoted to ensign on June 5, 1951, and made his first jet carrier landing on two days later. On June 28, 1951, "Essex" had set sail for Korea, with VF-51 aboard to act as ground-attack aircraft. VF-51 flew ahead to Naval Air Station Barbers Point in Hawaii, where it conducted fighter-bomber training before rejoining the ship at the end of July. On August 29, 1951, Armstrong saw action in the Korean War as an escort for a photo reconnaissance plane over Songjin.
Neil Armstrong and various flags and medals flown on his space missions. A series of auctions was held on November 1 to 3, 2018, that realized $5,276,320. Two fragments of wood from the propeller and four pieces of fabric from the wing from the 1903 "Wright Flyer" that Armstrong took to the moon fetched between $112,500 and $275,000 each. In a 2010 "Space Foundation" survey, Armstrong was ranked as the #1 most popular space hero; and in 2013, "Flying" magazine ranked him #1 on its list of 51 Heroes of Aviation. The press often asked Armstrong for his views on the future