Mercury-Atlas 6 was the first crewed spaceflight in the Mercury program, launched on May 5, 1961. The mission carried astronaut Alan Shepard aboard a Redstone rocket, reaching an altitude of 187.5 kilometers and completing a suborbital flight lasting about 15 minutes. This historic flight marked a significant milestone in the Space Race between the United States and the Soviet Union. It demonstrated the capability of human space travel and laid the groundwork for future missions, ultimately leading to the success of the Apollo program and lunar exploration.