Apollo astronaut James McDivitt dies aged 93

WASHINGTON, October 17, 2022 /PRNewswire/ — Former NASA astronaut James A McDivittwho commanded the Gemini IV and Apollo 9 missions died 13 Oct. McDivitt passed away peacefully surrounded by his family and friends Tucson, Ariz. He was 93 years old.

McDivitt was born June 10, 1929in Chicago. He graduated from Kalamazoo Central High School, in Kalamazoo, Michiganbefore receiving a Bachelor of Science degree in Aeronautical Engineering from the University of Michiganwho graduated top of his class in 1959.

He enlisted in the Air Force in 1951 and retired with the rank of Brig. General. He flew 145 combat missions in F-80 and F-86 aircraft during the Korean War. He was a graduate of the US Air Force Experimental Test Pilot School and the US Air Force Aerospace Research Pilot Course and served as an experimental test pilot at Edwards Air Force Base, California. During his piloting career he has logged more than 5,000 flight hours.

McDivitt was chosen by NASA to be an astronaut Sep 1962 as part of NASA’s second class of astronauts.

He first flew into space as commander of the Gemini IV mission June 1965. McDivitt was accompanied by another Air Force pilot Ed White on the program’s most ambitious flight to date. During Gemini IV, White would become the first American to venture outside of his spacecraft for what’s officially known as extravehicular activity (EVA), or as the world knows it, a spacewalk. In the years that followed, it was a skill that allowed Apollo explorers to walk on the moon and American astronauts and their partners from around the world to build the International Space Station. The mission’s four-day duration nearly doubled NASA’s astronauts’ previous time in space to that point, with the longest American spaceflight before Gordon Coopers 34-hour Mercury 9 mission.

McDivitt’s second spaceflight as Apollo 9 commander played a crucial role in landing the first humans on the moon. This was the first flight of the complete set of Apollo hardware and the first flight of the Lunar Module. The mission launched from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center March 3, 1969with commander James McDivitt, Command Module Pilot David Scott and Lunar Module Pilot Russell Schweickart. After launch, Apollo 9 entered Earth orbit and the crew conducted a technical test from start to finish of the first manned lunar module, nicknamed the “Spider”. They simulated the maneuvers that would be performed during actual lunar missions. During the mission, the astronauts performed a number of flight tasks using the command and service module and the lunar module. The rendezvous and docking of the lunar module with the command and service module had top priority. The crew also configured the lunar module to support a spacewalk by McDivitt and Schweickart. On the 10th flight day March 13, 1969the Apollo 9 capsule reentered Earth’s atmosphere and landed in the Atlantic Ocean, within three miles and in full view of the recovery ship, the USS Guadalcanal, some 341 miles north of Puerto Rico.

McDivitt has logged more than 14 days in space.

After Apollo 9, he became manager of lunar landing operations, leading a team that planned the lunar exploration program and redesigned the spacecraft to accomplish that task. in the Aug 1969he became manager of the Apollo spacecraft program, leading the program through Apollo 12, 13, 14, 15 and 16.

McDivitt retired from the US Air Force and left NASA June 1972to assume the position of Executive Vice President, Corporate Affairs for Consumers Power Company. in the March 1975he came to pullman, Inc. as executive vice president and director. in the October 1975 He became President of Pullman’s Standard Division, The Railcar Division, and later held additional responsibilities for the company’s leasing and engineering and construction businesses. in the January 1981 He joined Rockwell International as Senior Vice President, Government Operations, and Rockwell International Corporation, Washington, D.C

His numerous awards included two NASA Distinguished Service Medals and the NASA Exceptional Service Medal. He was also awarded two Air Force Distinguished Service Medals, four Distinguished Flying Crosses, five Air Medals and US Air Force Astronaut Wings for his service in the US Air Force. McDivitt also received the Chong Moo Medal from South Koreathe US Air Force Systems Command Aerospace Primus Award, the Arnold Air Society JFK Trophy, the Sword of Loyola, and the Michigan Wolverine Frontiersman Award.

SOURCE NASA