"I was interested in space" - Buzz Aldrin

Instead, Aldrin was hired as a test pilot school commander. This was despite the fact that he hadn’t undergone any test pilot training himself. Yet this sadly didn’t prove to be his calling. He told National Geographic, “I was interested in space, not airplanes. So, after a year, I decided to retire from the Air Force. I’d already left NASA and wasn’t anxious to join some corporation. So, I was not sure what the rest of my life would be like.” Photo Credit: Dave Doe/ FlickrB