Mattingly was due to fly on the Apollo 13 mission but was removed days before the launch due to exposure to German measles. He played a key role in the rescue of the crew (portrayed by Gary Sinise in the 1995 Apollo 13 film) and later orbited the moon on Apollo 16.
An astronaut who orbited the moon and helped rescue the crew of the Apollo 13 mission has died at the age of 87. Thomas Ken Mattingly, who was known as TK, died on Tuesday, said
statement said. Mattingly was played by Gary Sinise in the 1995 double Oscar-winning movie Apollo 13. Mattingly orbited the moon on Apollo 16 in April 1972. He described his experience in orbit by saying: 'I had this very palpable fear that if I saw too much, I couldn't remember. It was just so impressive,' according to
Astronaut Group 5 - a class of 19 astronauts chosen by the space agency in 1966 as the US sharpened its ambition to put a man on the moon by the end of the 1960s. Before taking to space, Mattingly was a member of the support crews for Apollo 8, the first to go to the moon, and Apollo 11, the first lunar landing. He remained with the space agency after Apollo in the Space Shuttle development programme where he commanded the STS-4 and STS-51C missions.
said: 'His unparalleled skill as a pilot aided us when he took on the role of command module pilot for Apollo 16 and spacecraft commander for space shuttle missions STS-4 and STS 51-C. 'The commitment to innovation and resilience toward opposition made TK an excellent figure to embody our mission and our nation's admiration.' Mattingly left
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