(10/11/1968) -- Apollo 7 astronauts Donn F. Eisele, foreground, and Walter Cunningham, rear, undergo spacesuit checks today prior to their Earth orbital mission with Walter M. Schirra Jr., not shown. The three space pilots lifted off atop a Saturn 1B space vehicle from Cape Kennedy's Launch Complex 34 at 11:03 a.m. EDT, Oct. 11, 1968. The National Aeronautics and Space Administration's first manned Apollo flight is designed to verify spacecraft systems for future lunar voyages.