Neil Armstrong, the first man to have walked on the moon and former US astronaut who led the Apollo 11 mission, has passed away at the age of 82 due to heart complications following a bypass surgery earlier this month.

The commander of the Apollo 11 mission became the first person to set foot on the moon on July 20, 1969, making him the most famous pioneer of space exploration. His first words after landing on moon, “That’s one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind” became one of the most inspirational phrases ever spoken.

Armstrong underwent a bypass surgery this month on August 7, just two days after his birthday, to treat blocked arteries. On Sunday, his family released a statement which described him as a “reluctant American hero who always believed he was just doing his job”.

Tributes have been flooding in for the astronaut, with US President Barrack Obama hailing Armstrong as one of America’s greatest heroes, adding that the crew of Apollo 11 carried with them the aspirations of an entire nation when they set out for the moon in 1969.

Neil Armstrong was brought up in Ohio, with a keen interest in flying. He earned his pilot’s certificate when he was just 15. After flying combat missions during the Korean war, he became a test pilot and joined Nasa’s astronaut programme in 1962.

On his “moon-walk”, he was joined by Buzz Aldrin, as they spent nearly three hours walking on the lunar surface, collecting samples, conducting experiments and taking photographs. Hearing of the death of his companion, Aldrin called Armstrong “a true American hero and the best pilot I ever knew.”

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