F1 engine on the Saturn V rocket in the Apollo/Saturn V Center, at the Kennedy Space Center, Florida, USA. The Saturn V was the launch vehicle for NASA's Apollo program of manned missions to the Moon. The Apollo program took place between 1961 and 1975. The Saturn V was one of the most powerful rockets ever made. Five F-1 engines were used in the first stage of the Saturn V rockets, the stage used during take-off. These engines burnt hundreds of tonnes of liquid oxygen and rocket fuel (kerosene) in around three minutes, lifting the 110-metre high, 3000-tonne rocket to an altitude of 68 kilometres and a speed of 2.4 kilometres per second.