NASA Astronaut Thomas Stafford Dies at 93

Stafford flew three types of spacecraft, journeyed to the moon, and logged more than 500 hours of spaceflight.

Monday, March 18, 2024 at 04:04 PM ET

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Astronaut Thomas Stafford, Gemini-6 prime crew pilot, is pictured onboard the NASA Motor Vessel Retriever in the Gulf of Mexico during water egress training in August 1965. [Courtesy: NASA]

Key Takeaways:

Thomas P. Stafford, a distinguished astronaut and Air Force general, passed away at 93 after a lengthy illness.
He was one of 24 astronauts to journey to the moon, notably commanding Apollo 10, the second crewed mission to orbit the moon and the first to fly the Lunar Module in lunar orbit.
Stafford commanded the historic Apollo-Soyuz Test Project in 1975, the first joint U.S.-Soviet space mission, fostering a spirit of international cooperation.
Throughout his career, he was a prolific test pilot, flying over 120 types of aircraft and logging more than 500 hours of space flight across Gemini, Apollo, and Apollo-Soyuz missions.

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Thomas P. Stafford, one of 24 astronauts to journey to the moon, died Monday after a lengthy illness. He was 93.

“Today, [former Air Force] 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 Apollo Soyuz,” NASA Administrator Bill Nelson said on X, formerly known as Twitter. “Those of us privileged to know him are very sad but grateful we knew a giant.”