Fred Haise facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Fred Haise
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Haise in 1969
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| Born |
Fred Wallace Haise Jr.
November 14, 1933 Biloxi, Mississippi, U.S.
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| Awards | Presidential Medal of Freedom NASA Distinguished Service Medal |
| Space career | |
| NASA astronaut | |
| Rank | Captain, USMC (1954–1957) Captain, USAF (1957–1963) |
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Time in space
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5d 22h 54m |
| Selection | NASA Group 5 (1966) |
| Missions |
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Mission insignia
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| Retirement | June 29, 1979 |
Fred Wallace Haise Jr. (born November 14, 1933) is a former American NASA astronaut. He was also an engineer, a fighter pilot, and a test pilot. Fred Haise is one of only 24 people who have flown to the Moon. He was the Lunar Module pilot on the famous Apollo 13 mission. He was supposed to be the sixth person to walk on the Moon, but the Apollo 13 landing was canceled during the trip.
Later, in 1977, Haise flew the Space Shuttle Enterprise in five important test flights. He retired from NASA in 1979.
Contents
Early Life and Education
Fred Wallace Haise Jr. was born on November 14, 1933, in Biloxi, Mississippi. His father joined the U.S. Navy after the attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941. Fred's family moved around a bit before returning to Biloxi. He graduated from Biloxi High School in 1950.
Fred then attended Perkinston Junior College. He had a scholarship for journalism and played on the baseball team. After graduating in 1952, he joined the Naval Aviation Cadet Program. He completed his flight training in 1954.
Military Pilot Career
Haise served as a U.S. Marine Corps fighter pilot from 1954 to 1956. He flew different types of fighter jets. He also taught others how to fly in the U.S. Navy.
After his military service, Haise went back to school. He earned a degree in aeronautical engineering from the University of Oklahoma in 1959. During this time, he also served in the Oklahoma Air National Guard as a fighter pilot.
He then started working for the new NASA organization as a research pilot. His Air National Guard unit was called up during the Berlin Crisis of 1961. He served for ten months as a fighter pilot in the United States Air Force.
Haise also completed special courses at the U.S. Air Force Test Pilot School in 1964. He has flown for a total of 9,300 hours, with 6,200 hours in jet aircraft.
NASA Career
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In 1966, Fred Haise was chosen as one of 19 new astronauts for NASA Astronaut Group 5. He had already worked with NASA as a civilian research pilot for several years. He was the first astronaut in his group to get a mission assignment. He served as a backup Lunar Module Pilot for both Apollo 8 and Apollo 11.
The Apollo 13 Mission
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Fred Haise was originally planned to fly on Apollo 14. However, his crew was moved to Apollo 13. This happened so that another astronaut, Alan Shepard, could have more training time.
Haise flew as the Lunar Module Pilot on the Apollo 13 mission in 1970. This mission was supposed to land on the Moon, but it had a serious problem. An oxygen tank exploded, damaging the spacecraft. The astronauts, Haise, Jim Lovell, and Jack Swigert, had to use the Lunar Module as a "lifeboat" to get back to Earth safely.
Because of how far the spacecraft traveled around the Moon, Haise, Lovell, and Swigert hold the record. They traveled the farthest distance from Earth ever by humans. During this difficult trip, Haise became sick with kidney infections. He was in pain for most of the journey.
Haise was supposed to be the sixth person to walk on the Moon during Apollo 13. However, the Moon landing part of the mission was canceled. Alan Shepard and Edgar Mitchell later became the fifth and sixth people to walk on the Moon on Apollo 14. That mission completed Apollo 13's original goal to explore the Fra Mauro formation.
After Apollo 13, Haise was a backup commander for Apollo 16. He was also expected to command Apollo 19. However, that mission was canceled in 1970 due to budget cuts.
Space Shuttle Test Flights
After his Apollo assignments, Haise moved to the Space Shuttle program. In 1977, he took part in the Approach and Landing Tests (ALT). These tests happened at Edwards Air Force Base.
Haise, as commander, piloted the Space Shuttle Enterprise during these tests. The Enterprise was carried into the air by a special plane. Then, it was released to glide and land like an airplane. These tests helped prove that the Space Shuttle could fly and land safely. This was a very important step for the success of the Space Shuttle program.
Haise was also assigned to command the second Space Shuttle mission, called STS-2A. This mission would have tried to boost the Skylab space station to a higher orbit. This would have saved Skylab for future use. However, delays in the Space Shuttle program and Skylab's orbit decaying faster than expected led to the mission being canceled. Skylab burned up in Earth's atmosphere in July 1979. The first Space Shuttle did not launch until April 1981.
In June 1979, Haise left NASA. He became a test pilot and executive at Grumman Aerospace Corporation. He stayed there until he retired in 1996. He was the only one of the four astronauts who flew the Enterprise landing tests who did not fly into space on the Space Shuttle.
Personal Life
Fred Haise has four children with his first wife, Mary Griffin Grant. They were married in 1954 and divorced in 1978. He married Frances Patt Price in 1979. Frances passed away in 2022.
In 1973, Haise was flying an old plane that had been changed to look like a Japanese bomber for a movie. While trying to land, the plane had an engine problem and crashed. Haise suffered serious burns over half of his body in the fire after the crash.
In 2022, Haise published his autobiography, Never Panic Early. It tells the story of his life and his experiences in the Apollo program.
Organizations and Awards
Haise is a member of several important groups. These include the American Astronautical Society (AAS) and the Society of Experimental Test Pilots (SETP).
He has received many awards and honors for his work. These include the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the NASA Distinguished Service Medal, and the NASA Exceptional Service Medal.
He was inducted into the International Space Hall of Fame in 1983. He was also inducted into the Aerospace Walk of Honor in 1995. In 1997, he became one of 24 Apollo astronauts inducted into the U.S. Astronaut Hall of Fame.
In 2022, a statue of Fred Haise was unveiled in his hometown of Biloxi, Mississippi. Haise was there for the ceremony. In 2023, he was inducted into the National Aviation Hall of Fame.
Images for kids
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Haise in 2015
See also
