Apollo 1 Fire  Jan 28, 1967 12:31 pm  Tragedy struck on the launch pad during a preflight test for Apollo 204, scheduled to be the first Apollo manned mission. It would have been launched on February 21, 1967, but Astronauts Virgil Grissom, Edward White, and Roger Chaffee lost their lives when a fire swept through the Command Module (CM) on January 27, 1967. The fire began at 23:31:04.7 GMT (6:31:04.7 p.m. EST). This image taken after the fire shows exterior damage to the command module.