Thomas P. Stafford
| Thomas P. Stafford | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| NASA Astronaut | |
| Nationality | American |
| Status | Retired |
| Born |
September 17, 1930 Weatherford, Oklahoma, U.S. |
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Other names
|
Thomas Patten Stafford |
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Other occupation
|
Test pilot, consultant |
| USNA, B.S. 1952 | |
| Rank | Lieutenant General, USAF |
|
Time in space
|
21d 03h 42m |
| Selection | 1962 NASA Group 2 |
| Missions | Gemini 6A, Gemini 9A, Apollo 10, ASTP |
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Mission insignia
|
   
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| Retirement | November 1, 1975 |
| Awards |
   
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Thomas Patten "Tom" Stafford (born September 17, 1930), (Lt Gen, USAF, Ret.), is an American former Air Force officer, test pilot, and NASA astronaut. He flew aboard two Gemini space flights; and in 1969 was the Commander of Apollo 10, the second manned mission to orbit the Moon and the first to fly a Lunar Module there.
In 1975, Stafford was Commander of the Apollo-Soyuz Test Project flight, the first joint U.S.-Soviet space mission. A Brigadier General at the time, he became the first general officer to fly in space. He was the first member of his Naval Academy class to pin on the first, second and third stars of a general officer.
He made six rendezvous in space and logged 507 hours of space flight. He has flown over 120 different types of fixed wing and rotary aircraft and three different types of spacecraft.
Stafford was born September 17, 1930, in Weatherford, Oklahoma, where he graduated from Weatherford High School in 1948. He was a Boy Scout and he earned the rank of Star Scout.
Stafford earned a Bachelor of Science degree with honors in 1952 from the United States Naval Academy, Annapolis, Maryland, and was commissioned a Second Lieutenant in the United States Air Force. He received his pilot wings at Connally AFB, Waco, Texas, in September 1953. He completed advanced interceptor training and was assigned to the 54th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron, Ellsworth AFB, Rapid City, South Dakota. In December 1955 he was assigned to the 496th Fighter Interceptor Squadron, Hahn Air Base, West Germany, where he performed the duties of pilot, flight leader, and flight test maintenance officer, flying F-86Ds. He attended the USAF Experimental Test Pilot School and received the A. B. Honts Award as the outstanding graduate in 1959.
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