US flag on the Moon, Apollo 11 mission, July 1969. The American flag planted on lunar soil, seen from inside the Apollo 11 Lunar Module. The footprints of astronauts Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin can be seen very clearly. The Apollo 11 Lunar Module, code named Eagle, with Armstrong and Aldrin on board, landed in the Sea of Tranquillity on 20 July 1969. Apollo 11 was the fifth manned Apollo mission, and was the first to land on the Moon.