Flown flashlights

The requirement for providing a simple, reliable, and flexible alternative source of light to astronauts in their spacecraft was met by providing each crew member with a flashlight. The best-known model - used by astronauts on the Apollo flights, and all Shuttle flights through to the late '80s - is the iconic brass ACR FA-5 penlight, but another less well-known model was used before this as noted below.

ACR Model FA-3 Penlight - Gemini missions

NASA description:	PENLIGHT

Manufacturer:	ACR Electronics Co.
Model:	ACR-FA-3

Dimensions:	5¼" long x 5/8" (min) to 1" (max) in diameter
Weight:	2½ oz (70 g) without batteries

NASA part no.:	EC-30115
No. carried/mission:	2

NASA usage:	Gemini 6 through 12

Gemini 9 penlight (image courtesy RRAuction)

Gemini 12 EVA flown penlight (image courtesy Heritage Auctions)

The first type of penlight used by the astronauts, flown on the Gemini VI to XII missions, was an ACR model FA-3 flashlight. Two of these flashlights were nominally carried per Gemini mission.

During his Gemini 12 EVA Buzz Aldrin carried two of these flashlights with him. The example shown above had the barrel well wrapped with velcro to allow to be easily attached outside the spacecraft. The lense of this penlight apparently became distorted due to the extreme temperature and pressure differentials it was exposed to.

According to the stowage lists this model of flashlight was also to be used on the Apollo 1 mission. Although it's not clear what material was used for the casing of this flashlight, the switch to the all-brass FA-5 model for Apollo 7 may have been related to the potential flammability of the original unit.

FLOWN availability - Only two flown ACR-FA-3 flashlights have been sold at auction.

Unflown availability - I've not seen an unflown example of this kind of flashlight sold at auction.

ACR Model FA-5 Penlight - Apollo and early Shuttle missions

NASA description:	PENLIGHT

Manufacturer:	ACR Electronics Co.
Model:	ACR-FA-5

Dimensions:	5⅛" long x 5/8" (min) to 1" (max) in diameter
Weight:	2½ oz (70 g) without batteries

NASA part no.:	ACR-FA-5
No. carried/mission:	6 to 8 (Apollo)
No. carried in LM:	2

NASA usage:	Apollo through Shuttle (late 80s)

Neil Armstrong's Apollo 11 penlight, part of the NASM collection

The distinctive brass flashlights used on the Apollo missions (from Apollo 7 onwards) were developed under contract with the Langley Research Center by ACR Electronics Co., a subsidiary of Chromalloy American Corp. and supplier of military and civilian survival equipment. The actual manufacture of the flashlights was sub-contracted out to flashlight specialists Fulton Industries of Wauseon, OH.

The magnesium flashlight was powered by two AA batteries and was turned on and off by rotating the bulb end of the brass casing.

These flashlights proved to be vital on the Apollo 13 mission as the crew were forced to rely on them heavily after powering down their stricken spacecraft. In a post-flight letter of thanks sent by the Apollo 13 crew to ACR Electronics^[2] they mentioned that even though the penlights were the main source of light after the power-down they never wore out a single set of batteries.

Still frame from Apollo 16 16mm onboard film showing an ACR penlight floating in zero-g in front of a grinning Charlie Duke

[Extract from letter dated Apr 19, 1971 from the Apollo 13 crew to ACR Electronics]

The penlight which you have supplied for the Apollo missions has been very useful and dependable in all missions to date. However, you deserve special praise for the role it played on our mission - Apollo 13.

As you know, due to the explosion, we were forced to ration our electrical power and water. With regard to the former, we never turned on the lights in the spacecraft after the accident. As a result your penlights served as our means of "seeing" to do the
job during the many hours of darkness when the sunlight was not com- ing through the windows. We never wore out even one set during the trip; in fact, they still illuminate today. Their size was also a convenience as it was handy to grip the light between clinched teeth to copy the lengthy procedures that were voiced up from Earth.

Indeed, Lovell notes in a later letter^[3] that when he found his Apollo 13 penlight in a drawer in 1981 it still lit up even though the batteries were the original set installed and used 11 years previously.

The stowage lists for Apollos 10 through 17 show that 6 or 8 penlights were carried aboard each mission.

ITEM NUMBER	PART NUMBER	NOMENCLATURE	STOWAGE LOCATION	UNIT WEIGHT	QTY/ SC
B 0115.	ACR-FA-5	PENLIGHTS	A1	.3	5 or 3
B 0206.	ACR-FA-5	PENLIGHTS	ON CREW	.3	3

Composite penlight entries from the Apollo 10-17 Stowage Lists

The first entry shows a number of penlights stowed in the Command Module at launch. On Apollo 7, 8, 10 and 11 there are 5 penlights shown, then 3 on Apollos 12 through 14, and finally 5 again for Apollos 15 through 17. The second entry shows that in addition one penlight was carried by each crewmember at launch. These were stowed in a special pocket on the left upper arm of the Apollo space suits.

Note that whilst the Commander and Lunar Module Pilot carried their individual penlights down to the surface and back, none of the CM-stowed penlights are noted as being transferred to the Lunar Module.

The Serial Numbers of the NASA-issue ACR-FA-5 flashlights reflect three distinct manufacturing batches, with numbers 10xx being manufactured in June and July of 1968, numbers 20xx in February 1970, and numbers 30xx in August 1972. Note that mixtures from different batches were carried on later flights.

FLOWN availability - These penlights were sometimes kept as momentos by the astronauts after the flights and some have found their way to market over the years. It's worth noting that the brass casings of some examples have become heavily corroded, most likely as a result of the original batteries having been left in place over the last few decades. NASA continued to used these flashlights on flights through to at least the late 80s, so numerous flown examples must exist.

Unflown availability - Unflown examples used in training or prototype examples may also find their way to market, but remain extremely scarce and highly sought-after. Supposedly this model of flashlight was also used by the military, but I've yet to see any surplus example appear on the secondary market so my impression is that it was likely only supplied to NASA.

A commercial flashlight (model no. ACR101) using some of the technology developed for NASA was marketed by ACR's parent company Chromalloy Electronics as the "Five Year Light". The name was based on the idea that the flashlight could be left unused for five years without any battery drain, but unfortunately the design does not resemble the NASA version at all. These flashlights were sold from mid 1972 to at least 1978, with a NASA spinoff report mentioning that 2 million units had been sold as of 1975. Vintage examples of this flashlight can be found from time to time on eBay.

Annex: NASA-issue Penlights sold at auction or identified in private or museum collections

Mssn.	Astronaut	Status	P/N	S/N	Date of Mfg.	Sold via	Sale Date	Lot no.	Price	Reference / Notes

GT9	unknown	FLOWN	ACR-FA-3	115		Part of Smithsonian collection, NASM
GT9	unknown	FLOWN	ACR-FA-3	116		RRAuction	May 23 2013	184	$3,044	Auction listing

GT11	unknown	FLOWN	?			RRAuction	Jun 25 2015	5019	UNSOLD	Auction listing
						RRAuction	Oct 23 2015	9133	UNSOLD	Auction listing
						RRAuction	Apr 20 2017	8104	UNSOLD	Auction listing
GT11	unknown	FLOWN	ACR-FA-3	?		Part of Smithsonian collection, NASM				NASM collection

GT12	Aldrin	FLOWN	ACR-FA-3			Christies	Sep 18 1999	53	$9,200	Auction listing
GT12	Aldrin	FLOWN	ACR-FA-3			Heritage	Apr 18 2013	40104	$7,768	Auction listing

GT12	Aldrin	FLOWN				Superior	May 16 1998	509	$1,725

AS7	Schirra	FLOWN	ACR-FA-5	100?		Christies	Sep 18 1999	95	$2,760	Auction listing Private collection
AS7	Schirra	FLOWN	ACR-FA-5	100?		Heritage	Apr 18 2013	40105	$5,378	Auction listing
AS7	Schirra	FLOWN				Odyssey	Feb 27 1994	77	$2,300
AS7	Cunningham	FLOWN	ACR-FA-5	?	?	Private collection

AS8	Borman	FLOWN	ACR-FA-5	?	?	On display at Experimental Aircraft Association Aviation Museum, Oshkosh, WI				EAA Aviation Museum website
AS8	Lovell	FLOWN	ACR-FA-5	1060	7-68	Heritage	Oct 7 2008	41066	$10,158	Auction listing

AS9	McDivitt	FLOWN	ACR-FA-5	1010		Part of Smithsonian collection, NASM
AS9	Schweickart	FLOWN	ACR-FA-5	1011	6-68	Heritage	Nov 6 2015	52044	$6,875	Auction listing
						RRAuction	Apr 20 2017	8208	UNSOLD
						RRAuction	Jul 16 2020	2202	UNSOLD
						RRAuction	Oct 15 2020	4084	$19,443	Auction listing
AS9	Schweickart	FLOWN	ACR-FA-5	1017		Part of Smithsonian collection, NASM				NASM collection
AS9	Scott	FLOWN	ACR-FA-5	1023		Part of Smithsonian collection, NASM				NASM collection
AS9	unknown	FLOWN	ACR-FA-5	1020	6-68	Part of Smithsonian collection, NASM				NASM collection
AS9	McDivitt	FLOWN	ACR-FA-5	?	7-68	Astronaut Central	Early 2013	n/a	$2,400	Auction listing

AS10	Cernan	LM FLOWN	ACR-FA-5	1031	7-68	Heritage	Mar 26 2008	58036	$8,365	Auction listing
AS10	Stafford	CM FLOWN	ACR-FA-5	1026	?	RRAuction	Apr 20 2023	9251	$9,375	Auction listing
AS10	Stafford	FLOWN?	ACR-FA-5	?	?	On display at Stafford Air & Space Museum				Photos of display

AS11	Armstrong	LM FLOWN	ACR-FA-5	1065	7-68	Part of Smithsonian collection, NASM				NASM collection
AS11	Aldrin	LM FLOWN	ACR-FA-5	1067	7-68	Part of Smithsonian collection, NASM				NASM collection
AS11	Collins	CM FLOWN	ACR-FA-5	1066	7-68	Part of Smithsonian collection, NASM
AS11	n/a	CM FLOWN	ACR-FA-5	1068	7-68	CM-stowed at launch Part of Smithsonian collection, NASM				NASM collection
AS11	n/a	CM FLOWN	ACR-FA-5	1069	7-68	CM-stowed at launch
AS11	Collins	CM FLOWN	ACR-FA-5	1070	7-68	CM-stowed at launch Part of Smithsonian collection, NASM				NASM collection
AS11	n/a	CM FLOWN	ACR-FA-5	1071	7-68	CM-stowed at launch Missing.
AS11	Aldrin	CM FLOWN	ACR-FA-5	1072	7-68	CM-stowed at launch Part of Smithsonian collection, NASM				NASM collection

AS12	Bean	LM FLOWN	ACR-FA-5	1006	7-68	Heritage	Nov 21 2020	50094	$13,750	Auction listing
AS12	Gordon	FLOWN		1055	7-68	Aurora	Apr 24 2004	543	$4,406	Auction listing
AS12	Gordon	FLOWN		1055	7-68	Heritage	Apr 18 2013	40124	$8,365	Auction listing

AS13	Lovell	FLOWN	ACR-FA-5	2070	2-70	Part of Smithsonian collection, NASM				NASM collection

AS15	Scott	LM FLOWN	ACR-FA-5	1024	6-68	Heritage	Apr 21 2010	41149	$26,290	Auction listing

AS16	Young	FLOWN	ACR-FA-5	2011	2-70	Heritage	Apr 1 2009	41125	$5,676	Auction listing
AS16	Young	FLOWN	ACR-FA-5	2011	2-70	Heritage	Nov 6 2015	52132	$12,500	Auction listing

AS17	Evans	FLOWN	ACR-FA-5	2002						Letter^[4]
AS17	Evans	FLOWN	ACR-FA-5	2057		Astro-Auction	Jul 18 2008		$7,600	Auction listing
AS17	Cernan	FLOWN	ACR-FA-5	2058	2-70	RRAuction	May 23 2013	687	$15,180	Auction listing
AS17	unknown	FLOWN	ACR-FA-5	2059		Retained by NASA after flight.				NASA document^[5]
AS17	unknown	FLOWN	ACR-FA-5	2060		Retained by NASA after flight.				NASA document^[5]
AS17	unknown	FLOWN	ACR-FA-5	2061		Retained by NASA after flight.				NASA document^[5]
AS17	unknown	FLOWN	ACR-FA-5	2062		Retained by NASA after flight.				NASA document^[5]
AS17	unknown	FLOWN	ACR-FA-5	2063		Retained by NASA after flight.				NASA document^[5]
AS17	Evans	Training	ACR-FA-5	2036	2-70	Astro-Auction	Jun 29 2008		$1,400	Auction listing Private collection
AS17	Evans	Training	ACR-FA-5	2036	2-70	RRAuction	Oct 15 2020	4323	$3,575	Auction listing

SLII	Bean	FLOWN	ACR-FA-5	2029	2-70	Heritage	Nov 21 2020	50105	$5,500	Auction listing
SLII	Lousma	FLOWN	ACR-FA-5	2025	2-70	RRAuction	Nov 20 2014	572	$5,928	Auction listing
SLII	Lousma	FLOWN	ACR-FA-5	2028	2-70	Heritage	Apr 18 2013	40521	$4,183	Auction listing

SLIII	Henize	FLOWN	ACR-FA-5	2023	2-70	Swann 2004		277		Auction listing
SLIII	Henize	FLOWN	ACR-FA-5	2023	2-70	RRAuction	May 23 2013	731	$2,268	Auction listing

ASTP	Slayton	FLOWN	ACR-FA-5	3005	8-72	Goldberg	Apr 25 2009	605	$2,280	Auction listing
ASTP	Slayton	FLOWN	ACR-FA-5	3005	8-72	Heritage	Apr 21 2010	41181	$3,884	Auction listing
ASTP	Stafford	FLOWN?	ACR-FA-5	3021	8-72	On display at Stafford Air & Space Museum				Photos of display

STS-3	Lousma	FLOWN	ACR-FA-5	2034	2-70	Heritage	Nov 6 2015	52160	$2,750	Auction listing

STS-51D	Garn	FLOWN	ACR-FA-5	1054	7-68	Part of Smithsonian collection, NASM				NASM collection
STS-51B/F	unknown	FLOWN	ACR-FA-5	3033	8-72	eBay	Oct 26 2017	253226767930	$3,950	Flown on STS-51B & 51F ; Auction listing

n/a	n/a	Unflown	none	none	unknown	eBay	Apr 23 2011	250807070440	$1,104	Listed as prototype ; Auction listing
n/a	n/a	Training	ACR-FA-5	1012	6-68	Goldberg	Jul 10 2011	1304	$1,947	Auction listing
n/a	n/a	Training	ACR-FA-5	1013	7-68	Goldberg	Jul 10 2011	1303	$2,596	Auction listing
n/a	n/a	unknown	ACR-FA-5	1064	7-68	eBay	Nov 26 2017	263328795309	$2,995	Auction listing
n/a	Slayton	Unflown	none	none	unknown	Goldberg	Jul 10 2011	1407	$780	No markings. Cracked lense. Auction listing
n/a	Lovell	Training	ACR-FA-5	n/a	2-70	Heritage	May 19 2017	50131	$3,250	Plastic mock-up ; Auction listing ">

Footnotes :

[1] Apollo Experience Report - Crew Provisions and Equipment Subsystem [PDF document]

[2] Letter from the crew of Apollo 13 to ACR Electronics, dated Apr 19, 1971.

[3] Letter from Jim Lovell, dated Dec 8, 1981.

[4] Letter listing items kept by the crew of Apollo 17 after the flight.

[5] CSD/GFE Allocations and Schedules by Vehicle for Apollo 17.

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