Buzz Aldrin Blasts Off With The Air Force Thunderbirds, Sets Record

Age ain’t nothing but a number for Buzz Aldrin .

On Sunday, the 87-year-old astronaut became the oldest person to ever fly with the USAF Thunderbirds as he joined the flight demonstration squadron at the Melbourne Air & Space Show in Florida.

Aldrin was up in the air for around 20 minutes as the team flew in diamond formation over Kennedy Space Center’s Launch Complex 39A , from where he blasted off on Apollo 11 in 1969 to become the second man  on the moon.

It’s not known exactly what speeds he reached whilst buckled into the cockpit of the F-16D. But Orlando Melbourne International Airport’s executive director Greg Donovan told Florida Today that the Thunderbirds usually fly at up to 700 miles per hour and  Sunday “was no exception.”

Aldrin documented the day on Twitter, and it’s clear he enjoyed the experience: