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John Young

John W. YOUNG

PROFILE

Full Name:

John Watts YOUNG.

Rank:

Captain, US Navy (Deceased).

Born:

24 September 1930, in San Francisco, California (American). Raised in Orlando, Florida.

Died:

5 January 2018, in Houston, Texas, from complications from pneumonia at the age of 87.

Education:

1948: Graduated from Orlando High School, Florida.

 

1952: BSc degree in Aeronautical Engineering from Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, Georgia.

Career Highlights:

Jun 1952: Joined the US Navy

 

1952-53: Fire Control Officer on the destroyer USS Laws.

 

Jun 1953-Jun 1954: Flight training, Naval Basic Air Training Command, Pensacola, Florida; followed by a six-month detachment at the Navy Advanced Training Station, Corpus Christi, Texas.

 

Jan 1955-Feb 1959: Fighter Squadron 103; completed two tours on the USS Coral Sea and USS Forrestal, flying F-8 Crusader and F-9 Cougar aircraft.

 

Feb 1959-Apr 1962: Test Pilot, Naval Air Test Center, Patuxent River, Maryland; involved in numberous test programmes with F-8D Crusader and F-4B Phantom aircraft; (Mar-Apr 1962) assigned to Project High Jump time-to-climb programme and set world records in the 3,000 and 25,000 metre altitude classes in the F-4B Phantom.

 

Apr-Oct 1962: Maintenance Officer, Squadron 143, NAS Miramar, California.

 

 

NASA ASTRONAUT ASSIGNMENTS

1962:

(17 Sep) Selected as one of the nine astronauts chosen by NASA for Group 2 ("The Next Nine"); (Oct) reported to NASA; basic training.

1963:

(26 Jan) Assigned technical duties in environmental control systems, personal and survival equipment.

1964:

(13 Apr) Named as Pilot (PLT) Gemini 3; Gemini mission training.

1965:

Gemini mission training; (23 Mar) flew as PLT, Gemini 3 (4 hrs 52 min); first US two-person space flight; first crewed spacecraft to manoeuvre in space; (5 Apr) named as Back-Up (BUp) PLT Gemini 6; Gemini mission training; (15-16 Dec) BUp PLT Gemini 6.

1966:

(24 Jan) Named as Command Pilot Gemini 10; Gemini mission training; (3 May) awarded US Navy Astronaut Wings; (18-21 Jul) flew as Command Pilot Gemini 10 (2 days 22 hrs 46 min); (Sep) Capcom Gemini 11; (22 Dec) named as BUp Command Module Pilot (CMP) for second crewed Apollo flight  (Apollo 2); Apollo mission training.

1967:

Apollo mission training; mission suspended due to 27 Jan Apollo 1 pad fire; generic Apollo training; (9 May) named BUp CMP first crewed Apollo (later designated Apollo 7); Apollo mission training; (20 Nov) confirmed as BUp CMP Apollo 7; Apollo mission training.

1968:

Apollo mission training; (Oct) BUp CMP Apollo 7 and served as Capcom; (13 Nov) named as CMP Apollo 10; Apollo mission training.

1969:

Apollo mission training; (18-26 May) flew as CMP Apollo 10 (8 days 0 hrs 3 min); first person to fly solo in lunar orbit; (5 Aug) named as BUp Commander (CDR) Apollo 13; Apollo mission training.

1970:

Apollo mission training; (Apr) BUp CDR Apollo 13; served as Capcom during the emergency.

1971:

(31 Jan) Supported Apollo 14 evaluation of docking problem; (3 Mar) named as CDR Apollo 16; Apollo mission training.

1972:

Apollo mission training; (16-27 Apr) flew as CDR Apollo 16 (11 days 1 hr 51 min); fifth crewed lunar landing; 9th person to walk on the Moon; 3 EVAs (20 hrs 14 min); (21 Apr) EVA 1 (7 hrs 11 min); (22 Apr) EVA 2 (7 hrs 23 min); (23 Apr) EVA 3 (5 hrs 40 min); (May) named as replacement (for Dave Scott) BUp CDR Apollo 17; Apollo mission training; (7-19 Dec) BUp CDR Apollo 17 and served as Capcom during mission.

1973:

(Jan) Named as Chief of the Astronaut Office (Code CB) Space Shuttle Branch; Shuttle development technical assignments in crew safety issues.

1974:

(Apr) Additional duties as Acting Chief of the Astronaut Office; (Jun) Chief Astronaut (until Apr 1987).

1975:

 

1976:

(Sep) Retired from the US Navy with the rank of Captain.

1977:

Member of the 1978 (Group 8) Astronaut Selection Board.

1978:

(17 Mar) Named as CDR of Shuttle Orbital Flight Test-1 (OFT-1)/ STS-1; Shuttle mission training; relinquished Chief Astronaut role to Al Bean for duration of STS-1 training.

1979:

Shuttle mission training.

1980:

Shuttle mission training.

1981:

Shuttle mission training; (12-14 Apr) flew as CDR STS-1 Columbia (2 days 6 hrs 20 min); first Space Shuttle orbital mission; Young became the first person to make 5 space flights; (Apr) resumed duties as Chief Astronaut.

1982:

Chief Astronaut; (20 Apr) named as CDR STS-9/Spacelab 1; relinquished duties as Chief Astronaut for the duration of his STS-9 assignments; Shuttle mission training.

1983:

Shuttle mission training; (28 Nov - 8 Dec) flew as CDR STS-9/Spacelab 1 (10 days 7 hrs 47 min); first Spacelab mission; Young became the first person to make 6 space flights.

1984:

Resumed duties as Chief Astronaut.

1985:

Chief Astronaut; (19 Sep) named as CDR STS-61J (Hubble Space Telescope deployment mission); Shuttle mission training; relinquished duties as Chief Astronaut during STS-61J training.

1986:

Shuttle mission training; (Feb) crew stood down as a result of the 28 Jan Challenger accident; Shuttle generic mission training.

1987:

Shuttle generic mission training; (15 Apr) reassigned from Chief Astronaut to new administrative position at NASA JSC effective May; replaced as Chief Astronaut by Dan Brandenstein; replaced as CDR Hubble deployment crew by Loren Shriver (not announced until Mar 1988).

May 1987 - Feb 1996:

(May 1987 - Feb 1996) Special Assistant to the Director of JSC for Engineering, Operations and Safety; remained eligible to command future Shuttle crews.

Feb 1996 - Dec 2004:

(Feb) Associate Director (Technical) JSC; remained eligible to command future Shuttle crews.

31 Dec 2004:

Retired from NASA after 42 years.

 

 

POST-ASTRONAUT EXPERIENCE

From 2005:

Continued to advocate for the development of the technologies that will allow us to live and work on the Moon and Mars.

5 Jan 2018:

Died following complications from pneumonia at the age of 87.

 

 

John YOUNG Space Flight Missions

Mission

Vehicle

Position

Dates

DD/MM/YYYY

Duration

DD:HH:MM:SS

Orbits

EVAs

(HH:MM)

Gemini 3

Titan II

Pilot

23/03/1965

00:04:52:51

3

0

Gemini 10

Titan II

Command Pilot

18/07/1966-21/07/1966

02:22:46:39

43

0+

Apollo 10

Saturn V

CM Pilot

18/05/1969-26/05/1969

08:00:03:23

1.5*

0

Apollo 16

Saturn V

Commander

16/04/1972-27/04/1972

11:01:51:25

1.5*

3 (20:14)++

STS-1

Columbia

Commander

12/04/1981-14/04-1981

02:06:20:53

36

0

STS-9

Columbia

Commander

28/11/1983-08/12/1983

10:07:47:23

167

0

 

Missions Flown:

6

Total Flight Time:

34:19:42:34

252

3 (20:14)++

+Supported EVA by Pilot Mike Collins from inside depressurised crew compartment of GT-10

* Young also completed 31 lunar orbits (including 4 solo) on Apollo 10 and 36 on Apollo 16

++Lunar surface EVAs

Space Explorer Achievements

First person to fly five and six space missions (2 Gemini; 2 Apollo; 2 Shuttle)

First US two-person space flight (Gemini 3)

Longest serving US NASA astronaut - 1962-2004 (42 years)

First person to fly solo in lunar orbit (Apollo 10)

9th person to walk on the Moon (Apollo 16)

First commander of Space Shuttle (STS-1 Columbia, 1981)

Commander, first Spacelab mission (STS-9 Columbia, 1983)

First to conduct seven rocket launches (6 from Earth, 1 from the Moon)
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All images are courtesy of NASA, unless otherwise stated
Group 2 astronaut John Young was the first person to make six space flights and the only astronaut to fly in NASA's Gemini, Apollo and Space Shuttle programmes.
Young attends to his space suit helmet in the ready room prior to the launch of Gemini 3.
Command Pilot Young (left) and Pilot Mike Collins aboard the USS Guadalcanal following their recovery at the end of Gemini 10.
The Apollo 10 Command Module Charlie Brown, with Young aboard, is photographed from the Lunar Module Snoopy carrying Tom Stafford and Gene Cernan. Young became the first person to fly solo around the Moon on this mission.
The launch of Apollo 16 in April 1972. This was the fourth of six rocket launches from Earth during Young's astronaut career. He also launched from the surface of the Moon on this mission in the Lunar Module Orion.
Young jumps off the lunar surface as he salutes the US flag at the Descartes landing site during Apollo 16.
Young is shown on the flight deck of Columbia during the first Space Shuttle mission, STS-1 in 1981. A notebook of flight activities data can be seen floating beside him.
An 'upside down' Young enjoys a meal break with German ESA astronaut Ulf Merbold during STS-9, the first flight of the European Spacelab module aboard the Shuttle.