Fred Haise
Fred Wallace Haise Jr. was born on the 14th of November 1933, in Biloxi, Mississippi. His father enlisted in the U.S. Navy after the attack on Pearl Harbor on the 7th of December 1941. The family moved to Chicago and later Key West before returning to Biloxi when his ship deployed to the South Pacific. He graduated from Biloxi High School in 1950 and attended Perkinston Junior College with a journalism scholarship. Haise joined the Naval Aviation Cadet Program and trained at NAS Pensacola and NAS Whiting Field. He completed flight training in 1954 flying SNJ and F6F Hellcat aircraft. He served as a Marine Corps fighter pilot with VMF-533 and VMF-114 from March 1954 to September 1956. Later he worked as an instructor at NAS Kingsville, Texas. After military service he earned a Bachelor of Science degree in aeronautical engineering from the University of Oklahoma in 1959.
NASA selected Fred Haise as one of nineteen astronauts for Group 5 in 1966. He had already worked as a civilian research pilot for NASA at the Lewis Research Center near Cleveland. Haise became the first astronaut in his group assigned to a mission. He served as backup Lunar Module Pilot for both Apollo 8 and Apollo 11. This role placed him on the cusp of lunar exploration before any landing occurred. His early assignments demonstrated trust from NASA leadership despite being part of a new class. The selection process favored candidates with extensive test pilot experience and engineering backgrounds. Haise's background in aviation made him a strong candidate for this rigorous program. He flew five Space Shuttle Approach and Landing Tests later in his career but started here.
Haise flew as Lunar Module Pilot on the aborted Apollo 13 mission in 1970. The crew included Jim Lovell and Jack Swigert who hold the record for farthest distance traveled by humans. During the flight Haise developed a urinary tract infection that progressed to kidney infections. These conditions caused pain throughout most of the trip. He was originally slated to become the sixth human to walk on the Moon during Apollo 13 behind Lovell. Alan Shepard and Edgar Mitchell eventually completed the mission objectives on Apollo 14. The distance between Earth and Moon during this specific mission remains unmatched by any other human spaceflight. Haise and Swigert were the first people from Group 5 to fly in space together. The cancellation of the lunar landing attempt turned their journey into a survival story rather than an exploration success.
In 1977 Fred Haise participated in the Approach and Landing Tests at Edwards Air Force Base. He piloted the Space Shuttle Enterprise alongside C. Gordon Fullerton as pilot. They conducted three free flights after release from the Shuttle Carrier Aircraft. These tests verified shuttle flight characteristics before operational missions began. Haise was assigned to command STS-2A with Jack R. Lousma as pilot. That mission would have delivered the Teleoperator Retrieval System to boost Skylab. Delays in development and increased orbital decay led to cancellation of that mission. Skylab destroyed itself entering Earth's atmosphere in July 1979 while the Shuttle did not launch until April 1981. In June 1979 Haise left NASA to work for Grumman Aerospace Corporation. He remained there until retiring in 1996. He was the only one of four astronauts who conducted Enterprise landings not to fly on the Shuttle.
On the 22nd of August 1973, Haise crashed a Convair BT-13 converted to look like an Aichi D3A torpedo bomber. The aircraft belonged to the Commemorative Air Force during filming of Tora! Tora! Tora!. An undetermined power plant failure caused a crash landing at Scholes Field in Galveston, Texas. Second-degree burns covered over 50 percent of his body after the post-crash fire. He married Mary Griffin Grant on the 4th of June 1954 and divorced her on the 21st of July 1978. He later married Frances Patt Price on the 9th of January 1979. Frances died on the 7th of February 2022. Haise has four children from his first marriage. His recovery from severe burns demonstrated resilience beyond spaceflight challenges. The incident occurred while he was piloting historical aircraft for film production purposes.
Fred Haise received numerous honors including the Presidential Medal of Freedom. He earned the NASA Distinguished Service Medal and NASA Exceptional Service Medal. In 1983 he was inducted into the International Space Hall of Fame. The Aerospace Walk of Honor added him in 1995. On the 4th of October 1997, twenty-four Apollo astronauts were inducted into the U.S. Astronaut Hall of Fame. The City of Biloxi unveiled a statue of Haise in the parking lot of the historic Biloxi Lighthouse on the 13th of February 2022. Mississippi artist Mary Ott Tremel Davidson created the statue. Haise had his handprints set in concrete at the base before unveiling. He was inducted into the National Aviation Hall of Fame in Dayton, Ohio in September 2023. Other awards include the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics Haley Astronautics Award for 1971.
Haise appeared in popular culture through depictions in film and television productions. Bill Paxton played Fred Haise in the 1995 motion picture Apollo 13. Adam Baldwin portrayed him in the 1998 HBO miniseries From the Earth to the Moon. In 2022 Haise published his autobiography titled Never Panic Early about his life and experiences. The book covers his time in the Apollo program and personal history. He remains the last surviving crew member of Apollo 13. He is also the last surviving Apollo astronaut who flew to the moon without landing. His story continues to inspire new generations of pilots and engineers. Interviews with Haise appear in various media outlets including NOVA series footage from 1998.
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Common questions
When and where was Fred Haise born?
Fred Wallace Haise Jr. was born on the 14th of November 1933, in Biloxi, Mississippi.
What mission did Fred Haise fly as Lunar Module Pilot?
Fred Haise flew as Lunar Module Pilot on the aborted Apollo 13 mission in 1970 alongside Jim Lovell and Jack Swigert.
Where did Fred Haise crash a Convair BT-13 aircraft?
Fred Haise crashed a Convair BT-13 converted to look like an Aichi D3A torpedo bomber at Scholes Field in Galveston, Texas, on the 22nd of August 1973.
Which honors has Fred Haise received for his service?
Fred Haise received numerous honors including the Presidential Medal of Freedom, NASA Distinguished Service Medal, and induction into the U.S. Astronaut Hall of Fame on the 4th of October 1997.
Who portrayed Fred Haise in the 1995 motion picture Apollo 13?
Bill Paxton played Fred Haise in the 1995 motion picture Apollo 13 while Adam Baldwin portrayed him in the 1998 HBO miniseries From the Earth to the Moon.