posted 12-20-2010 04:44 PM               

Space Cover #88, Apollo Insurance Covers

Perhaps the most popular and well-known of all the many space covers are the so-called Apollo insurance covers. They are called insurance covers because they were created to provide a type of "life insurance" for the families of the astronauts while making their perilous journeys to the moon. The concept was if the crew was lost, the insurance covers would become valuable and could be sold to provide funds for the families. Of course, no crews were lost, and after serving their purpose, most of the covers were distributed and sold, with space enthusiasts' collections their new homes.

Apollo insurance covers were created for six flights and crews: Apollos 11, 12, 13, 14, 15 and 16. There were three types for Apollo 11; one type for Apollo 12; two types for Apollos 13, 14 and 15; and one type for Apollo 16. The Manned Spacecraft Center Stamp Club (MSCSC) printed the 3 types used for Apollo 11 and continued with Apollos 13,14 and 15. Beginning with Apollo 12, so-called "Astronaut-insignia" covers were also used as insurance covers for Apollos 12,13, 14, 15 and 16.

Shortly before each flight to the moon, the three Apollo crew members would take time from their training to sign each cover. While no official numbers and records are known, only a few hundred were created for each flight, with perhaps 100 to 300 covers done for each of the three astronaut's families and held by them until the flights ended safely.

Presented here are eight Apollo insurance covers: three for Apollo 11 and one each for the other five flights. The three Apollo 11 insurance covers were produced by the MSCSC of Houston, TX, while the Astronaut-insignia covers, shown here for Apollos 12,13, 14, 15 and 16, were produced and printed on Florida's Space Coast.

posted 12-20-2010 06:53 PM               

Because of recent developments, perhaps the record should be revised in determining the #1 insurance type for Apollo 15.

It should be the MSCSC-cachet types as Col. Worden only remembers signing this cover variety before their launch to the moon.

Bishop has said beforehand that his special crew printed covers also made their way into the hands of crewmembers and were signed before launch.

Should we consider a Bishop cover as a possible #2 crew insurance type?

posted 12-20-2010 09:09 PM               

I believe most, if perhaps not all, of the crew-type MSCSC cachets only had the first class 8-cent Antarctic stamps applied to them.

It has always been my understanding that Col. Scott requested both stamp varieties on their personal covers.

The American Bicentennial issue in 1971 not only was patiotic, as you pointed out, but also because the stamp colors were the same as the Apollo 15 mission insignia; red, white, and blue!

The Scott-chosen Antarctic design, another 8-cent first class issue that was available at the time of the lunar voyage, was an appropriate theme--it was thought--for space cover uses.

Even though the stamp commemorated a ten year treaty, there was an "exploration" sort-of "look" to it; also, it contained red, white, and blue colors.

posted 12-21-2010 05:26 AM               

The crew insignia covers for the first manned lunar landing mission were produced by the NASA Exchange Council here at Kennedy Space Center.

Apollo 11's Dow-Unicover cachets were designed by a KSC graphic design worker and were printed in the Orlando, FL, area.

NASA Exchange cachet covers were first produced for Apollo 8's lunar orbital mission in 1968 and continue on today with similar cachet cover productions for every human spaceflight along with other major events and special occasions.

posted 12-21-2010 08:45 AM               

In my display of the 8 Apollo insurance covers, I decided to show the Apollo 15 Astronaut-insignia cover in place of the MSCSC cover mainly because of uniformity and consistancy, as it fits in nicely with the similar designed and appearing covers for Apollos 12 thru 16 (and in my opinion, it hasn't been officially demoted to type 2 status yet).

Below I have shown both the Apollo 15 Astronaut-insignia and the MSCSC insurance covers.

And I plan to edit my original post to correct my error concerning the production of the Apollo 11 "crew insignia/emblem" and Dow-Unicover insurance covers.

Later I plan to show examples of Apollo 13 and 14 type 2 insurance covers (could use some help with Apollo 14).

posted 12-21-2010 04:42 PM               

Another reason, that I think we have to take into consideration, is the higher quantities of known insurance covers from Apollo 15 that are of the MSCSC type.

Overall, in my opinion, it would seem to somewhat support the basis that we're seeing more crew-signed MSCSC cover varieties instead of the Bishop crew-signed printed cachets.

Worden and Irwin seemed to favor, or have in their own possessions, Manned Spacecraft Center Stamp Club issues more than the Bishop designs.

While Worden can't recall any of the Bishop covers signed before launch, I know Irwin did have a few that I personally saw during a visit to his Colorado Springs office and home in 1990.

Scott, on the other hand, when recently asked by Worden and myself about the MSCSC/Bishop cover productions in possible use as personal crew covers prior to his moon-bound trip, he simply had no comment or recollection whatsoever about them.

But as Bob pointed out in the above post, the Apollo 15 Bishop astronaut insignia covers do fit in "uniformity and consistency" with all the others (Apollos 12-16) that were issued by Bishop for the crew's own personal usages.

As I explained to Worden, and again last month, why would Apollo 15 be the only exception to such an observation?

posted 09-29-2011 05:25 PM               

To pick up on Ross' post above, I've also seen Apollo 16 covers (I presume insurance covers) where John Young signed in blue ink in the upper left corner.

posted 10-01-2011 02:16 PM               

Several years ago, Walt Cunningham had several Apollo 13 insurance covers for sale, with Swigert's autograph, for $900. That was a great opportunity that many of us missed - including me.

It is a problem separating actual insurance covers from those signed after the flight, as they can be quite similar. Col. Al Worden has signed and verified on the back of his Apollo 15 insurance covers he is now selling that they came from his collection, which guarantees that they are actual insurance covers. Several other astronauts have done the same, such as Pete Conrad and Charlie Duke. These should be of special collector interest.