Deke Slayton

Donald K. Slayton
NASA Astronaut
Nationality	United States
Status	Deceased
Born	(1924-03-01)March 1, 1924 Sparta, Wisconsin, U.S.
Died	June 13, 1993(1993-06-13) (aged 69) League City, Texas, U.S.
Other names	Donald Kent Slayton
Previous occupation	Bomber pilot, test pilot
Alma mater	University of Minnesota, B.S. 1949
Rank	Major, USAF
Time in space	9d 01h 28m
Selection	1959 NASA Group 1
Missions	Apollo–Soyuz Test Project
Mission insignia
Retirement	February 27, 1982
Awards	Collier Trophy James H. Doolittle Award

Donald Kent Slayton (March 1, 1924 – June 13, 1993), (Major, USAF), better known as Deke Slayton, was an American World War II pilot, aeronautical engineer, test pilot who was selected as one of the original NASA Mercury Seven astronauts, and became NASA's first Chief of the Astronaut Office.

After joining NASA, Slayton was selected to pilot the second U.S. manned orbital spaceflight, but was grounded in 1962 by atrial fibrillation, an irregular heart rhythm. He then served as NASA's Director of Flight Crew Operations, making him responsible for crew assignments at NASA from November 1963 until March 1972. At that time he was granted medical clearance to fly, and was assigned as the docking module pilot of the 1975 Apollo–Soyuz Test Project, at age 51 becoming the oldest person to fly in space at the time. This record was surpassed in 1983 by 53-year-old John Young and in 1998 by Slayton's fellow Project Mercury astronaut John Glenn, who at the age of 77 flew on Space Shuttle mission STS-95.

Slayton died at the age of 69 on June 13, 1993, from a malignant brain tumor.

Slayton was born on March 1, 1924, on a farm near Sparta, Wisconsin, to parents Charles Sherman Slayton (1887–1972) and Victoria Adelia Slayton (née Larson; 1895–1970). He was of English and Norwegian descent. In 1929, a childhood farm equipment accident left him with a severed left ring finger. He attended elementary school in Leon, Wisconsin, and graduated from Sparta High School in 1942.