"We Came All This Way To Explore The Moon, And The Most Important Thing Is That We Discovered The Earth...” 

An astronaut who was part of what was then mankind's greatest adventure... the first flight to orbit the moon and  return back, has died in an accident while flying a T-34. 

Bill Anders, who also is credited with the famous Earthrise photo of the Earth coming up over the moon (taken aboard Apollo 8), was said to be the only occupant of the aircraft. Anders was 90 years old and his death was confirmed by his son, Greg. 

The accident occurred Friday when his T-34 Mentor reportedly went down in the water near Roche Harbor, WA, NW of Seattle. The aircraft was reported down at 1140PT, and that the aircraft had been flying from North to South when it was seen to go into the water near the North end of Jones Island in San Juan Channel. 

Anders only flew one space mission but led an extraordinary life. In 1964, Anders was selected by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration as an astronaut with responsibilities for dosimetry, radiation effects and environmental controls. He was backup pilot for the Gemini XI, Apollo 11 flights, and was aboard for Apollo 8 -- the first lunar orbit mission in December 1968. At last report, he had logged more than 6,000 hours flying time.

Anders settled in Washington State, where he and his wife founded their flight museum. Heritage Flight Museum was founded in 1996 by William and Valerie Anders in Bellingham, Washington. The Museum’s vintage aircraft collection began with the P-51 Mustang “Val-Halla” and has steadily grown. In 2014, HFM moved to its new home at Skagit Regional Airport in Burlington, Washington. The museum currently houses 15 aircraft, several antique military vehicles, a library, and many artifacts donated by veterans. 

Major General Anders retired from the Air Force reserves in 1988 and is survived by his wife, Valerie (Hoard) Anders; his sons Alan, Glen, Greg and Eric; and his daughters, Gayle and Diana.

Remarking some time ago about the Earthrise photo he captured while orbiting the moon, Anders noted that, "We came all this way to explore the moon, and the most important thing is that we discovered the Earth...” 

The entire ANN staff and family offer our prayers and best wishes to all who knew and cared for this extraordinary flyer... 

FMI: https://heritageflight.org/