Richard Francis "Dick" Gordon Jr. (October 5, 1929 – November 6, 2017) was an American

naval officer An officer is a person who holds a position of authority as a member of an armed force or uniformed service. Broadly speaking, "officer" means a commissioned officer, a non-commissioned officer (NCO), or a warrant officer. However, absent ...

and

aviator An aircraft pilot or aviator is a person who controls the flight of an aircraft by operating its directional flight controls. Some other aircrew members, such as navigators or flight engineers, are also considered aviators because they a ...

test pilot A test pilot is an aircraft pilot with additional training to fly and evaluate experimental, newly produced and modified aircraft with specific maneuvers, known as flight test techniques.Stinton, Darrol. ''Flying Qualities and Flight Testin ...

, and

NASA The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agencies of the United States government, independent agency of the federal government of the United States, US federal government responsible for the United States ...

astronaut An astronaut (from the Ancient Greek (), meaning 'star', and (), meaning 'sailor') is a person trained, equipped, and deployed by a List of human spaceflight programs, human spaceflight program to serve as a commander or crew member of a spa ...

, and a

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

executive. He was one of 24 people to have flown to the Moon, as command module pilot of the

Apollo 12 Apollo 12 (November 14–24, 1969) was the sixth crewed flight in the United States Apollo program and the second to land on the Moon. It was launched on November 14, 1969, by NASA from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Commander Charles ...

mission, which orbited the Moon 45 times. Gordon had already flown in space as the pilot of the 1966

Gemini 11 Gemini 11 (officially Gemini XI) With Gemini IV, NASA changed to Roman numerals for Gemini mission designations. was the ninth crewed spaceflight mission of NASA's Project Gemini, which flew from September 12 to 15, 1966. It was the 17th crewed ...

mission.

Biography

Early life and education

Gordon was born in

Seattle, Washington Seattle ( ) is the List of municipalities in Washington, most populous city in the U.S. state of Washington (state), Washington and in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. With a population of 780,995 in 2024, it is the List of Unit ...

, on October 5, 1929, the first of five children of Richard Francis Gordon Sr. (1905–1963), a machinist, and his wife, Angela Frances Gordon ( Sullivan; 1903–1985), an elementary school teacher. He was a

Boy Scout A Scout, Boy Scout, Girl Scout or, in some countries, a Pathfinder is a participant in the Scout Movement, usually aged 10–18 years, who engage in learning scoutcraft and outdoor and other special interest activities. Some Scout organizatio ...

, and earned the rank of Star Scout. He graduated from North Kitsap High School in

Poulsbo, Washington Poulsbo ( ) is a city on Liberty Bay in Kitsap County, Washington, Kitsap County, Washington (state), Washington, United States. It is the smallest of the four cities in Kitsap County. The population was 11,970 at the 2020 United States Census, ...

, in 1947, then entered the

University of Washington The University of Washington (UW and informally U-Dub or U Dub) is a public research university in Seattle, Washington, United States. Founded in 1861, the University of Washington is one of the oldest universities on the West Coast of the Uni ...

, from where he received a

Bachelor of Science A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, B.S., B.Sc., SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree that is awarded for programs that generally last three to five years. The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Scienc ...

degree in

chemistry Chemistry is the scientific study of the properties and behavior of matter. It is a physical science within the natural sciences that studies the chemical elements that make up matter and chemical compound, compounds made of atoms, molecules a ...

in 1951 and he was also a member of

Phi Sigma Kappa Phi Sigma Kappa (), colloquially known as Phi Sig or PSK, is a men's social and academic Fraternities and sororities, fraternity with approximately 74 List of Phi Sigma Kappa chapters#Chapters, active chapters and provisional chapters in North Am ...

Naval career

After graduating from college, Gordon joined the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest Displacement (ship), displacement, at 4.5 millio ...

and received his wings as a

Naval Aviator Naval aviation / Aeronaval is the application of military air power by navies, whether from warships that embark aircraft, or land bases. It often involves '' navalised aircraft'', specifically designed for naval use. Seaborne aviation encompas ...

in 1953. He then attended All-Weather Flight School and jet transitional training, and was subsequently assigned to an all-weather fighter squadron at Naval Air Station Jacksonville,

Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

. In 1957, he attended the United States Naval Test Pilot School at Naval Air Station Patuxent River,

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It borders the states of Virginia to its south, West Virginia to its west, Pennsylvania to its north, and Delaware to its east ...

, and served as a flight

until 1960. During this tour of duty, he did flight test work on the F-8U Crusader, F-11F Tiger, North American FJ Fury, and A-4D Skyhawk, and was the first project test pilot for the F4H-1 Phantom II. He served with Fighter Squadron 121 ( VF-121) at the Naval Air Station Miramar,

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

, as a flight instructor in the F4H-1 and participated in the introduction of that aircraft to the

Atlantic The Atlantic Ocean is the second largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, with an area of about . It covers approximately 17% of Earth's surface and about 24% of its water surface area. During the Age of Discovery, it was known for se ...

and Pacific Fleets. He was also flight safety officer, assistant operations officer, and ground training officer for Fighter Squadron 96 ( VF-96) at Miramar. He logged more than 4,500 hours of flying time with 3,500 hours of those hours in

jet aircraft A jet aircraft (or simply jet) is an aircraft (nearly always a fixed-wing aircraft) propelled by one or more jet engines. Whereas the engines in Propeller (aircraft), propeller-powered aircraft generally achieve their maximum efficiency at much ...

. He was also a student at the U.S.

Naval Postgraduate School Naval Postgraduate School (NPS) is a Naval command with a graduate university mission, operated by the United States Navy and located in Monterey, California. The NPS mission is to provide "defense-focused graduate education, including clas ...

Monterey, California Monterey ( ; ) is a city situated on the southern edge of Monterey Bay, on the Central Coast (California), Central Coast of California. Located in Monterey County, California, Monterey County, the city occupies a land area of and recorded a popu ...

. He won the

Bendix Trophy The Bendix Trophy is a U.S. aeronautical racing trophy. The transcontinental, point-to-point race, sponsored by industrialist Vincent Bendix founder of Bendix Corporation, began in 1931 as part of the National Air Races. Initial prize money f ...

race from

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

in May 1961, flying an F4H-1 in which he established a new speed record of 869.74 miles per hour and a transcontinental speed record of 2 hours and 47 minutes.

NASA career

Gordon was one of the third group of astronauts, named by NASA in October 1963, being the oldest astronaut in his selection. He had been a finalist for the second selection, in 1962.

Project Gemini

Astronaut Richard Gordon attaches a tether line from his spacecraft to Agena

Gordon served as backup pilot for the

Gemini 8 Gemini 8 (officially Gemini VIII) With Gemini IV, NASA changed to Roman numerals for Gemini mission designations. was the sixth crewed spaceflight in NASA's Project Gemini, Gemini program. It was launched on March 16, 1966, and was the 14th crew ...

flight. In September 1966, he made his first space flight, as pilot of

, alongside

Pete Conrad Charles "Pete" Conrad Jr. (June 2, 1930 – July 8, 1999) was an American NASA astronaut, aeronautical engineer, naval officer, aviator, and test pilot who commanded the Apollo 12 mission, on which he became the third person to walk on t ...

. At the time, the flight set an altitude record of , which still stands as the highest-apogee Earth orbit. Gordon was already good friends with Conrad, who had once been his roommate on the

aircraft carrier An aircraft carrier is a warship that serves as a seagoing airbase, equipped with a full-length flight deck and hangar facilities for supporting, arming, deploying and recovering carrier-based aircraft, shipborne aircraft. Typically it is the ...

. On the flight, Gordon performed two spacewalks, which included attaching a tether to the Agena and retrieving a nuclear emulsion experiment package.

Apollo program

Gordon was assigned as the backup command module pilot for

Apollo 9 Apollo 9 (March 3–13, 1969) was the third human spaceflight in NASA's Apollo program, which successfully tested systems and procedures critical to landing on the Moon. The three-man crew consisted of Commander James McDivitt, Command Modul ...

. In November 1969, he flew as command module pilot of

, the second crewed mission to land on the Moon. While his crewmates,

and Alan Bean, landed in the Ocean of Storms, Gordon remained in lunar orbit aboard the command module '' Yankee Clipper'', photographing tentative landing sites for future missions. After

, Gordon served as the backup commander of

Apollo 15 Apollo 15 (July 26August 7, 1971) was the ninth crewed mission in the Apollo program and the fourth Moon landing. It was the first List of Apollo missions#Alphabetical mission types, J mission, with a longer stay on the Moon and a greate ...

. He was slated to walk on the Moon as commander of Apollo 18, but the mission was canceled because of budget cuts. Gordon logged a total of 315 hours and 53 minutes in space, of which 2 hours and 41 minutes were spent in EVA.

Astronaut office

After his flights, Gordon worked in the astronaut office. He became the chief of advanced programs in 1971. Gordon worked on the design of the

Space Shuttle The Space Shuttle is a retired, partially reusable launch system, reusable low Earth orbital spacecraft system operated from 1981 to 2011 by the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) as part of the Space Shuttle program. ...

. He retired from NASA and the U.S. Navy in January 1972.

Post-NASA career

After leaving NASA, Gordon served as

executive vice president A vice president or vice-president, also director in British English, is an officer in government or business who is below the president (chief executive officer) in rank. It can also refer to executive vice presidents, signifying that the vi ...

of the

New Orleans Saints The New Orleans Saints are a professional American football team based in New Orleans. The Saints compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC South, South division. Since 1975, the team ...

Professional Football Club in the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National ...

(1972–1976); was

general manager A general manager (GM) is an executive who has overall responsibility for managing both the revenue and cost elements of a company's income statement, known as profit & loss (P&L) responsibility. A general manager usually oversees most or all of ...

of Energy Developers, Limited (EDL), a

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

partnership involved in a

joint venture A joint venture (JV) is a business entity created by two or more parties, generally characterized by shared ownership, shared returns and risks, and shared governance. Companies typically pursue joint ventures for one of four reasons: to acce ...

with

Rocket A rocket (from , and so named for its shape) is a vehicle that uses jet propulsion to accelerate without using any surrounding air. A rocket engine produces thrust by reaction to exhaust expelled at high speed. Rocket engines work entirely ...

Research Corporation for the development of a liquid chemical

explosive An explosive (or explosive material) is a reactive substance that contains a great amount of potential energy that can produce an explosion if released suddenly, usually accompanied by the production of light, heat, sound, and pressure. An ex ...

for use in the oil and

gas Gas is a state of matter that has neither a fixed volume nor a fixed shape and is a compressible fluid. A ''pure gas'' is made up of individual atoms (e.g. a noble gas like neon) or molecules of either a single type of atom ( elements such as ...

industry (1977);

president President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...

of Resolution Engineering and Development Company (REDCO), which provided design and operational requirements for wild

oil well An oil well is a drillhole boring in Earth that is designed to bring petroleum oil hydrocarbons to the surface. Usually some natural gas is released as associated petroleum gas along with the oil. A well that is designed to produce only gas m ...

control and fire fighting equipment on board large semisubmersible utility vessels (1978); following REDCO merger with Amarco Resources, Gordon assumed the additional duties of vice president of marketing, Westdale, an oil well servicing subsidiary of AMARCO operating in North Central Texas and

Oklahoma Oklahoma ( ; Choctaw language, Choctaw: , ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Texas to the south and west, Kansas to the north, Missouri to the northea ...

, and also served as vice president for operations, Texas Division (1980); served as director, Scott Science and Technology, Inc., Los Angeles Division (1981–1983). In March 1982 he became

of Astro Sciences Corporation. This company provides a range of services including

engineering Engineering is the practice of using natural science, mathematics, and the engineering design process to Problem solving#Engineering, solve problems within technology, increase efficiency and productivity, and improve Systems engineering, s ...

project management Project management is the process of supervising the work of a Project team, team to achieve all project goals within the given constraints. This information is usually described in project initiation documentation, project documentation, crea ...

, project field support teams, to

software Software consists of computer programs that instruct the Execution (computing), execution of a computer. Software also includes design documents and specifications. The history of software is closely tied to the development of digital comput ...

and hardware system design for control room applications. In the summer of 1984, Gordon was a technical advisor for and played the part of "Capcom" in the CBS

miniseries In the United States, a miniseries or mini-series is a television show or series that tells a story in a predetermined, limited number of episodes. Many miniseries can also be referred to, and shown, as a television film. " Limited series" is ...

Space Space is a three-dimensional continuum containing positions and directions. In classical physics, physical space is often conceived in three linear dimensions. Modern physicists usually consider it, with time, to be part of a boundless ...

'' by

James A. Michener James Albert Michener ( or ; February 3, 1907 – October 16, 1997) was an American writer. He wrote more than 40 books, most of which were long, fictional family sagas covering the lives of many generations, set in particular geographic locales ...

. Gordon served as

chairman The chair, also chairman, chairwoman, or chairperson, is the presiding officer of an organized group such as a board, committee, or deliberative assembly. The person holding the office, who is typically elected or appointed by members of the gro ...

and co-chairman of the Louisiana Heart Fund, chairman of the

March of Dimes March of Dimes is a United States nonprofit organization that works to improve the health of mothers and babies. The organization was founded by US President Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1938, as the National Foundation for Infantile Paralysis, to co ...

(Mother's March), honorary chairman for

Muscular Dystrophy Muscular dystrophies (MD) are a genetically and clinically heterogeneous group of rare neuromuscular diseases that cause progressive weakness and breakdown of skeletal muscles over time. The disorders differ as to which muscles are primarily affe ...

, and on the

boards of directors A board of directors is a governing body that supervises the activities of a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government agency. The powers, duties, and responsibilities of a board of directors are determined by government regulations ...

for the Boy Scouts of America and Boys' Club of Greater New Orleans.

Personal life

From his marriage (which ended in divorce) to his first wife Barbara Field, who died in 2014, Gordon had six children. He died in San Marcos, California, on November 6, 2017, at the age of 88. His hobbies included

water skiing Water skiing (also waterskiing or water-skiing) is a surface water sport in which an individual is pulled behind a boat or a cable ski installation over a body of water, skimming the surface on one or two skis. The sport requires sufficien ...

and

golf Golf is a club-and-ball sport in which players use various Golf club, clubs to hit a Golf ball, ball into a series of holes on a golf course, course in as few strokes as possible. Golf, unlike most ball games, cannot and does not use a standa ...

. He was buried at

Arlington National Cemetery Arlington National Cemetery is the largest cemetery in the United States National Cemetery System, one of two maintained by the United States Army. More than 400,000 people are buried in its 639 acres (259 ha) in Arlington County, Virginia. ...

Organizations

Gordon was a

fellow A fellow is a title and form of address for distinguished, learned, or skilled individuals in academia, medicine, research, and industry. The exact meaning of the term differs in each field. In learned society, learned or professional society, p ...

of the American Astronautical Society, an associate fellow of Society of Experimental Test Pilots, a member of the Navy League, and a member of

Awards and honors

* Navy Astronaut Wings; *

NASA Distinguished Service Medal The NASA Distinguished Service Medal is the highest award that can be bestowed by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration of the United States. The medal may be presented to any member of the federal government, including both milita ...

; *

NASA Exceptional Service Medal The NASA Exceptional Service Medal is an award granted to U.S. government employees for significant sustained performance characterized by unusual initiative or creative ability that clearly demonstrates substantial improvement in engineering, a ...

; *

in 1961; * Two Navy Distinguished Flying Crosses; * Navy Distinguished Service Medal; *

Merit Award in 1966; * Institute of Navigation Award for 1969; * Godfrey L. Cabot Award in 1970; * Rear Admiral William S. Parsons Award for Scientific and Technical Progress in 1970; *

Manned Spacecraft Center The Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center (JSC) is NASA's center for human spaceflight in Houston, Texas (originally named the Manned Spacecraft Center), where human spaceflight training, research, and flight control are conducted. It was renamed in ...

(MSC) Superior Achievement Award; *

NASA Group Achievement Award The NASA Group Achievement Award (GAA) is an award given by NASA The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agencies of the United States government, independent agency of the federal government of the U ...

; * Richard Gordon Elementary School in

Kingston, Washington Kingston (formerly Appletree Cove) is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) in Kitsap County, Washington, United States. The population was 2,515 at the 2020 census. Kingston is along the shores of Appletree Cove and Pu ...

, was named after him. Gordon was inducted into the International Space Hall of Fame with nine of his Gemini astronaut colleagues in 1982. He was inducted into the

United States Astronaut Hall of Fame The United States Astronaut Hall of Fame, located inside the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex Heroes & Legends building on Merritt Island, Florida, honors American astronauts and features the world's largest collection of their personal memor ...

on March 19, 1993. In 2020, Gordon was inducted into the

National Aviation Hall of Fame The National Aviation Hall of Fame (NAHF) is a museum, annual awards ceremony and learning and research center that was founded in 1962 as an Ohio non-profit corporation in Dayton, Ohio, United States, known as the "Birthplace of Aviation" with ...

in Dayton, Ohio.

In media

In the 1998

HBO Home Box Office (HBO) is an American pay television service, which is the flagship property of namesake parent-subsidiary Home Box Office, Inc., itself a unit owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The overall Home Box Office business unit is based a ...

From the Earth to the Moon ''From the Earth to the Moon: A Direct Route in 97 Hours, 20 Minutes'' () is an 1865 novel by Jules Verne. It tells the story of the Baltimore Gun Club, a post-American Civil War society of weapons enthusiasts, and their attempts to build an en ...

'' Gordon was played by

Tom Verica Tom Verica (born May 13, 1964) is an American actor, director, and producer, best known for his role as Sam Keating in the ABC drama ''How to Get Away with Murder'' (2014–2020). He also played Jack Pryor in the NBC critically acclaimed drama ...

Books authored

Gordon wrote the foreword for astronaut Al Worden's 2011 book, ''Falling to Earth: An Apollo 15 Astronaut's Journey to the Moon'', as well as the foreword to the 2010 book ''Footprints in the Dust: The Epic Voyages of Apollo, 1969–1975'', edited by Colin Burgess.

Technical papers

Dick Gordon during a debriefing in the quarantine van aboard the Hornet

* Gordon, R. F., ''F4H-1 Navy Preliminary Evaluation'', Phase I, NAS Patuxent River, Maryland, September 1958; * Gordon, R. F., ''F4H-1 Navy Preliminary Evaluation'', Phase I Supplement, October 1958; * Gordon, R. F., ''FJ-4B Fuel Consumption and Performance Report'', Flight Test, NAS Patuxent River, Maryland, 1958; * Gordon, R. F., ''F11F Fuel Consumption and Performance Report'', Flight Test, NAS Patuxent River, Maryland, 1958; * Gordon, R. F., ''Revised Roll Performance Requirements for MIL-SPEC-F-8785''. All Aircraft in Configuration PA, Flight Test, NAS Patuxent River, Maryland, 1958; * Gordon, R. F., ''F8U Spin Evaluation Report'', Flight Test, NAS Patuxent River, Maryland, 1959; * Gordon, R. F., ''Gemini XI, Gemini Program Mission Report'', NASA Manned Spacecraft Center Report, October 1966; * Gordon, R. F., ''Apollo XII Mission Report'', NASA Manned Spacecraft Center Report, December 1969.

References

External links

*
Episode 43 on astrotalkuk.org
Interview during visit to the UK April 2011.
Remembering Dick Gordon
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gordon, Richard F. Jr. 1929 births 2017 deaths 1966 in spaceflight 1969 in spaceflight Apollo 12 Apollo program astronauts Canceled Apollo missions American business executives United States Navy astronauts United States Astronaut Hall of Fame inductees Military personnel from Seattle People from Poulsbo, Washington University of Washington College of Arts and Sciences alumni American chemists Aviators from Washington (state) Naval Postgraduate School alumni United States Naval Test Pilot School alumni American test pilots United States Navy officers United States Naval Aviators Recipients of the Distinguished Flying Cross (United States) Recipients of the NASA Distinguished Service Medal Recipients of the NASA Exceptional Service Medal 20th-century American businesspeople Burials at Arlington National Cemetery American aviation record holders American flight instructors Project Gemini astronauts Spacewalkers