Apollo 11 astronaut Buzz Aldrin told an audience in Alabama’s “Rocket City” of Huntsville Wednesday that America’s space program is “very discouraging” and “not very good.” But Aldrin thinks he may have the solution.

“This will not be the only place that I will mention something that will not sit well with a lot of people here,” Aldrin said. “It is very disappointing to me and many others to realize that the top heavy-lift rocket that the U.S. has today - the Space Launch System - and the top spacecraft the U.S. has today - the Orion - cannot get into lunar orbit with any appreciable maneuvering capability.”

“I say that to this audience,” Aldrin said, “because that is not very good for 50 years of development.”

Aldrin spoke at the U.S. Space & Rocket Center to the Aerospace States Association under a Saturn V rocket like the one that took him, Neil Armstrong and Michael Collins to the Moon 50 years ago this week. That rocket was developed in Huntsville by a team led by German rocket scientist Wernher von Braun, whom Aldrin called “a great man,” and NASA in Huntsville is leading development of the Space Launch System.

Aldrin has been advocating an Earth-orbiting staging area for missions to deep space. It wouldn’t be a Gateway, which is NASA’s word for the Moon-orbiting staging area it wants to build, but what Aldrin calls a TransWay.

Such a station would allow rockets by SpaceX, United Launch Alliance and Blue Origin to be used for missions back to the Moon and even Mars. They could lift payloads to the TransWay that would be joined for the journey deeper into space. This would end the need for a big rocket to carry heavy payloads to the Moon, he said.

Aldrin wants a new “space alliance” involving NASA, Europe, Russia, Japan, China and commercial companies. More nations such as India and Australia could get involved later.

“We can’t pay for all this,” Aldrin said of the current plan. “We have to learn at the Moon by bringing in other nations. We could all work together on what is really needed to get to Mars.”

“I’m probably not too popular,” Aldrin said, “but things are going to change. We can’t afford to be unsuccessful in what we choose to do. I’m very encouraged that I’m on the right track.”

Aldrin spoke for nearly 40 minutes and did talk about his “greatest good fortune to be able to join Neil (Armstrong) and Mike (Collins) on the Saturn V that day.” He talked about the world tour the Apollo 11 crew took upon returning to Earth and how they were “pleasantly surprised to see signs that said ‘We did it.’ Not just ‘you did it.’” The world shared the accomplishment, he said, and it could share future accomplishments, too.

America has made steps in space since that “small step for man” onto the Moon, Aldrin said. He cited the space station, space shuttle, Skylab and scientific probes to the ends of the Solar System and beyond.

Aldrin agreed to take a few questions but only from the elected officials in the audience - the ones who decide America’s space plans. One state legislator from Hawaii asked what Aldrin would say to people who say the Moon landing was faked.

“Join the crowd that’s going to charge into Area 51,” Aldrin replied.