Michael Collins, NASA astronaut and pilot for 1969 moon landing, dies at 90

 By Don Johnson, UPI,

Updated Apr. 28, 2021 1:39 PM EDT

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April 28 (UPI) -- Michael Collins, a former NASA astronaut who was part of the first moon landing mission of Apollo 11 in 1969, died on Wednesday. He was 90.

Collins was part of Apollo 11's three-man crew, but unlike Neil Armstrong and Edwin "Buzz" Aldrin, he never walked on the moon. He was sometimes known as the "forgotten astronaut."

Command module pilot Michael Collins (C), pictured here with Apollo 11 crew members Neil Armstrong (L) and Edwin "Buzz" Aldrin in 1969, died on Wednesday at the age of 90, NASA said. File Photo by NASA/UPI

"Today the nation lost a true pioneer and lifelong advocate for exploration in astronaut Michael Collins," Acting NASA Administrator Steve Jurczyk said in a statement Wednesday.

"As pilot of the Apollo 11 command module -- some called him 'the loneliest man in history' -- while his colleagues walked on the moon for the first time, he helped our nation achieve a defining milestone."

Collins' death leaves Aldrin as the last remaining survivor from the historic Apollo 11 mission. Armstrong died in 2012.

Apollo 11 astronaut Michael Collins is seen in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, D.C., during a ceremony honoring the 50th anniversary of the moon landing on July 19, 2019. File Photo by Kevin Dietsch/UPI

During the run up to the moon landing's 50th anniversary in 2019, Collins told UPI about his views of NASA's current direction -- and said the U.S. space program should basically skip a return to the moon and focus on sending astronauts to Mars.

"I see more moon missions as delaying Mars, which is a much more interesting place to go," he said.