Facts about Wally Schirra Missions
- 09
Schirra's selection as command pilot for Apollo 7 came after NASA removed him from the Apollo 1 mission in August 1966 due to management concerns about his critical attitude toward spacecraft readiness.
- 08
Schirra's meticulous fuel management during Gemini VI-A's aborted launch on October 25, 1965, prevented an ejection sequence that would have destroyed both spacecraft.
- 07
Three Mercury, Gemini, and Apollo missions flown by Schirra accumulated 295 hours 15 minutes in space across 22 days of total flight time.
- 06
Schirra commanded the first crewed Gemini mission, Gemini VI-A, which launched on December 15, 1965, after an abort and reschedule from October of that year.
- 05
Schirra's crew on Apollo 7 reported 143 separate technical issues during the 11-day mission, yet resolved each one to ensure safe return and validate critical systems.
- 04
In 1962, Schirra's manual control of Sigma 7's thrusters during reentry demonstrated unprecedented precision, using only 1.5 percent of the backup fuel reserve.
- 03
Apollo 7 in October 1968 marked Schirra's third spaceflight, conducting 163 orbits over 11 days to validate the Apollo command and service module systems.
- 02
Wally Schirra's Gemini 6-A mission in December 1965 achieved the first crewed spacecraft rendezvous, closing within one foot of Gemini VII in orbit.
- 01
During Wally Schirra's Sigma 7 mission in October 1962, he completed 6 orbits around Earth in just 9 hours and 13 minutes.