We choose to go to the moon. We choose to go to the moon
in this decade and do the other things, not because they are
easy, but because they are hard.
John F. Kennedy
Sept. 12, 1962
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Walter Marty Schirra Jr.
Astronaut
| Date of Birth: |
March 12, 1923 |
| Place of Birth: |
Hackensack, NJ |
| Date of Death: |
May 3, 2007 |
| Joined NASA: |
April 2, 1959 |
| Left NASA: |
July 1, 1969 |
| Space Flights: |
3 |
| Time in Space: |
17 days, 7 hours, 12 minutes |
|
MISSION ASSIGNMENTS
Mercury-Atlas 6
Assignment: Capcom (California)
Mercury-Atlas 7
Assignment: Back-up Pilot
Mercury-Atlas 8
October 3, 1962
Assignment: Pilot
Flight Duration: 9 hours, 13 minutes
Mercury-Atlas 9
Assignment: Capcom (Cape)
Gemini 3
Assignment: Back-up Command Pilot
Gemini 6A
December 15-16, 1965
Assignment: Command Pilot
Flight Duration: 1 day, 1 hour, 51 minutes
Apollo 1
Assignment: Back-up Commander
Apollo 7
October 11-22, 1968
Assignment: Commander
Flight Duration: 10 day, 20 hours, 8 minutes
HIGHLIGHTS
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B.Sc., US Naval Academy, Annapolis, 1945
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Received his "wings" in Pensacola, Florida, in 1947.
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From 1947 to 1959 Schirra was a US Navy fighter pilot, Operations Officer and test pilot.
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Graduated US Navy Test Pilot School, Patuxent Maryland, 1958.
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Flew 90 combat missions in Korea as and exchange pilot with the US Air Force.
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Took part in the development of the Sidewinder air to air missile.
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October 1962, Piloted the third manned orbital mission remaining in space for a full working day.
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December 1965, Command Pilot of the first spacecraft to rendezvous with another manned vehicle.
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Commanded the first manned Apollo mission in October 1968.
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After NASA, became a guest commentator with Walter Cronkite on CBS coverage of Apollo missions.
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1969, President, Regency Investors Inc., Denver, Colorado
1970-72, Chairman and CEO, Environmental Control Co.
1973-74, Chairman of the Board, SERNCO Inc.
1975, Director of Technology Purchases, Johns-Manville Co.
1976, Director of Power Plant & Aerospace Systems, Johns-Mansville.
1978, Vice-President of Development, Goodwin Co. Inc.
1979, President, Schirra Enterprises.
Board member and Director of a multitude of companies in the ensuing years.
-
Author of "Schirra's Space", 1988.
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