Buzz Aldrin is one in every of solely 12 people to have walked on the moon.

Today, getting a car constructed and delivered in a well timed style is almost as spectacular a feat.

Aldrin, the final surviving member of the Apollo 11 crew, ordered a 2022 Lincoln Nautilus crossover in October from Galpin Lincoln in California. He wished it delivered in time for his 92nd birthday on Jan. 30, however his order sat unproduced for months amid the semiconductor scarcity.

Ford Motor Co.‘s Oakville Meeting, house to the Nautilus and Ford Edge, has misplaced greater than 120 days of manufacturing for the reason that chip disaster started final 12 months, in keeping with AutoForecast Options.

That is extra downtime than another Ford facility, AFS says.

However once you’re one of many world’s most well-known astronauts, you are likely to have connections.

Lincoln President Pleasure Falotico was alerted to Aldrin’s plight by a textual content from former Ford CEO Jim Hackett, who had been contacted by Aldrin’s crew.

“He mentioned, ‘Hey, are you able to assist get this car produced? It is for a really particular consumer named Buzz Aldrin, as in Buzz Aldrin the astronaut,’ ” Falotico mentioned.

To underscore the purpose, Hackett despatched her a photograph of the December 1969 Nationwide Geographic with Aldrin on the quilt.

Falotico mentioned the crew instantly labored to tug forward his order and get it delivered.

“Our manufacturing people received collectively, positioned the order, accelerated the order and made certain it went by,” she mentioned. “We had delivery points, climate points; you identify it, we had it. However there was a date that was set in January that was for his birthday they wished to verify it arrived by.”

Mission achieved.

The crew even added a particular contact: a customized plaque contained in the car that reads “Particularly made for Buzz Aldrin by Oakville Meeting Plant staff.”

Falotico mentioned it was encouraging to look at the crew accomplish its objective, though the episode was a sobering reminder of the widespread affect of the trade’s manufacturing points.

“It is affecting everyone,” she mentioned. “We take them one after the other and do what we are able to to get them dealt with.”