Former NASA astronaut Jim McDevitt has died at the age of 93

Official photo of astronaut Jim A. McDevitt snapped in 1971. McDevitt died at the age of 93.

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Official photo of astronaut Jim A. McDevitt snapped in 1971. McDevitt died at the age of 93.

NASA

Jim McDivitt, an astronaut who played a key role in undertaking America’s first spacewalk and Landing on the moon Possibly, he died. He was 93 years old.

NASA confirmed his death to NPR on Monday, adding that he was surrounded by family and friends when he died Thursday.

Known as a brave test pilot and dedicated commander, McDevitt commanded two of the most important flights of the early space race – Gemini 4 and Apollo 9.

McDevitt grew up in Kalamazoo, Michigan and graduated from the University of Michigan. In 1951, he joined the Air Force and fought during the Korean War, flying 145 combat missions.

In 1962, NASA chose McDevitt to become an astronaut. He was chosen to command Gemini 4 – becoming the first NASA rookie to lead a mission.

NASA is considered The most ambitious journey At the time in 1965, the Gemini 4 mission marked the first time the United States had conducted a spacewalk, and the longest it had been in orbit in Earth’s orbit: 4 days.

Four years later, McDevitt commanded Apollo 9 – a 10-day rocking mission to orbit the Earth in March 1969 that included testing the spacecraft for a moon landing. He paved the way for NASA to successfully land humans on the Moon four months later in July 1969.

Apollo 9 was his last flight into space. Despite his primary role in driving NASA’s lunar landing, McDevitt himself never made it to the moon. Frances French, a spaceflight historian, said McDevitt chose not to lead a lunar landing mission and decided to take on a management role.

US astronauts Jim McDevitt (right) and Edward White greet their families after returning safely from Gemini 4 spaceflight in June 1965.

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US astronauts Jim McDevitt (right) and Edward White greet their families after returning safely from Gemini 4 spaceflight in June 1965.

Keystone/Holton Archive/Getty Images

“The most important thing to McDevitt was that the overall program was successful from the moon landing personally,” he told NPR.

McDevitt became director of the lunar landing operations in May 1969, and in August of that year he became director of the Apollo spacecraft program. He was the program director of the Apollo 12-16 missions.

French said McDevitt has emerged as a leader in striking the perfect balance between playfulness, intelligence and seriousness.

“It’s not uncommon to find people in life who are so energetic and dedicated to their work,” French said. “This man was one of the rare examples of both.”

In 1972, He’s retired Both from NASA and the Air Force, where he was promoted to brigadier general. He has logged more than 5,000 flying hours in his life.

He later held executive positions in manufacturing companies.

McDivitt was inducted into the US Astronaut Hall of Fame in 1993.

NPR’s Russell Lewis contributed to this report.