Astronaut who played role in Apollo program dies
(Gray News) - Apollo astronaut Thomas Kenneth “Ken” Mattingly died at age 87 on Tuesday, NASA announced in a news release.
Born in Chicago, he graduated from Auburn University in 1958 and started his career with the U.S. Navy before joining the Air Force Aerospace Research Pilot School.
NASA chose him to be part of the astronaut class in 1966.
Mattingly was exposed to rubella just before the launch of Apollo 13.
Instead of going into space, he stayed on Earth, providing key real-time decisions to successfully bring home the stricken spacecraft and its three crewmembers.
Gary Sinise played the role of Mattingly in the 1995 film “Apollo 13.”
He later had a seat on the Apollo 16 mission and commanded two space shuttle missions as well before resigning from NASA in 1985.
NASA administrator Bill Nelson paid tribute to Mattingly, saying in part, “NASA astronaut TK Mattingly was key to the success of our Apollo Program, and his shining personality will ensure he is remembered throughout history.”
He is survived by an adult son, according to his NASA biography.
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