Gemini-Apollo Astronaut, Tom Stafford, Passes On | Aero-News Network
Aero-News Network
RSS icon RSS feed
podcast icon MP3 podcast
Subscribe Aero-News e-mail Newsletter Subscribe

Airborne Unlimited -- Most Recent Daily Episodes

Episode Date

Airborne-Monday

Airborne-Tuesday

Airborne-Wednesday Airborne-Thursday

Airborne-Friday

Airborne On YouTube

Airborne-Unlimited-05.12.25

Airborne-NextGen-05.13.25

AirborneUnlimited-05.14.25

Airborne-FlightTraining-05.15.25

AirborneUnlimited-05.16.25

Tue, Mar 19, 2024

Gemini-Apollo Astronaut, Tom Stafford, Passes On

Administration Waves Goodby to Colleague

NASA commented regarding the recent passage of 93-year old space alum Tom Stafford.

“Today, General Tom Stafford went to the eternal heavens, which he so courageously explored as a Gemini and Apollo astronaut as well as a peacemaker in the Apollo-Soyuz mission." The agency referenced an infamous picture showing Stafford shaking hands with Alexey Leonov, a landmark in East-West collaboration.

“Tom was critical to the earliest successes of our nation’s space program and was instrumental in developing space as a model for international cooperation. He also helped us learn from our tragedies and grow and reach for the next generation of achievement. He was intimately involved with the space program, sharing his thoughts and suggestions on NASA missions until the end of his life. 

“Tom was a gentleman and a daredevil. He flew our first rendezvous in space on Gemini 6, and piloted Gemini 9’s path to Earth with pencil and paper when the spacecraft’s guidance computer failed in orbit. He commanded Apollo 10, the first flight of the lunar module to the Moon, a critical test flight that resulted in the successful landing on the Moon during the Apollo 11 mission. Tom also flew more than 100 different types of aircraft throughout his career as he pushed the edge of the envelope of our achievement in air and space. He was an extraordinary peacemaker who commanded NASA’s first rendezvous of an international spacecraft on the Apollo-Soyuz mission. His counterpart, General Alexei Leonov, became a best friend over the years. Tom gave Alexei’s eulogy in 2019 at the Russian state funeral.

In Stafford's post-space life, policy and procedure still loomed large, NASA notes. “Tom’s dedication to NASA never wavered. In later years, he chaired a team to independently advise NASA on how to carry out President H.W. Bush’s space policy and completed the study ‘America at the Threshold’ about the nation’s potential future with humans in space. He also was co-chairman of the Stafford-Covey Space Shuttle Return to Flight Task Group that assessed NASA’s implementation of the Columbia Accident Investigation Board Space Shuttle Return to Flight recommendations.

“Our nation will be forever grateful to an explorer who never lost his sense of wonder. About his time in space, he said, ‘It changes you, oh sure. Changes your outlook…As you look back, you see a little blue and white baseball, actually, it’s smaller than a baseball. But it’s hard to envision that is where all the people you’ve known all your life are, where you went to school, your friends, your family. It’s also hard to envision that there are three billion people on that blue and white baseball.’ Godspeed, Tom Stafford.”

FMI: www.nasa.gov

Advertisement

More News

NTSB Prelim: Hy-Tek Hurricane HP

About 100 Ft Above Ground Level, The Engine Lost Total Power On April 14, 2025, about 1003 Pacific daylight time, an experimental amateur-built Hy-Tek Hurricane HP, N9088G, was sub>[...]

ANN's Daily Aero-Term (05.14.25): Flight Check

Flight Check A call-sign prefix used by FAA aircraft engaged in flight inspection/certification of navigational aids and flight procedures. The word “recorded” may be a>[...]

Aero-News: Quote of the Day (05.14.25)

“While our traditional mechanical magnetos will be around for a long time, Hartzell Engine Tech acquired E-MAG to expand its PowerUP Ignition System product portfolio into bo>[...]

ANN's Daily Aero-Term (05.15.25): Primary Radar

Primary Radar A radar system in which a minute portion of a radio pulse transmitted from a site is reflected by an object and then received back at that site for processing and dis>[...]

Airborne 05.12.25: $1M Flying Car, Marion Airport Saved, AirVenture Cup

Also: ‘Sonoran Beauty’ Jump-Qualified, IAG Orders, FAA Shuts Down ATC Oversight, EAA Joins Modern Skies Slovakia-based developer Klein Vision recently unveiled the prod>[...]

blog comments powered by Disqus



Advertisement

Advertisement

Podcasts

Advertisement

© 2007 - 2025 Web Development & Design by Pauli Systems, LC