I have no trouble believing a giant US government bureaucracy, aided by a giant Australian government bureaucracy, could lose these tapes. But I’m quite sure this won’t “lay the conspiracy theories to rest” as the NASA officials seem to imagine. People believe in conspiracy theories because they want to, not because the available evidence supports the theory. This long-delayed appearance of the clearer original images will just be added to the conspiracy theorists’ arsenal, with claims that the resurfacing of the tapes after 40 years is implausible, this is just how long it took NASA to cook up good fakes, since they had to wait for technology to improve, yadda, yadda.
It was a suicide mission. A computer with all the power of a Hershey Bar controlling a mission with a lander that had never actually been flown because it couldn't have been, sheesh! These guys should be dessicated skeletons floating around the sun by now.
But the biggest question is why risk killing or even worse, stranding, guys on the surface of the moon watching them die. The Soviets would have had the upper hand and America would have been criticized by the rest of the world for RUSHING into space with no safeguards etc., etc. Talk about a throw of the dice.
I do have trouble believing even giant bureaucracy would lose tapes of the THE VERY FIRST landing on the moon.
But I’m not into the conspiracy stuff. Just don’t believe they would be that stupid to lose something of such great importance and value to the world.