Space travel
Apollo 8 commander Frank Borman dies
The astronauts of the Apollo 8 mission in 1968: James Lovell (lr), William Anders and Frank Borman. photo
© Uncredited/AP
As commander, Borman led the first manned mission around the moon in 1968. Now he died at the age of 95. “Astronaut Frank Borman was a true American hero,” NASA said.
The US astronaut and commander of the Apollo 8 mission Frank Borman is dead. Borman died on Tuesday in the US state of Montana at the age of 95, the NASA space agency announced on Thursday (local time). “Today we remember one of NASA’s best. Astronaut Frank Borman was a true American hero,” said NASA Director Bill Nelson. As Apollo 8 commander, the astronaut led the first manned mission around the moon in 1968 and paved the way for the moon landing a few months later. Born in the US state of Indiana, Borman developed a passion for aircraft at the age of 15, which eventually led him to the Air Force and later to NASA. From 1950 onwards he was a fighter pilot and later also worked as an assistant professor of thermodynamics at the West Point Military Academy. In 1967, he was a member of an investigative committee that investigated the Apollo spacecraft fire that killed three astronauts.
He was later named head of the Apollo program and led the team that redesigned the Apollo spacecraft. After his departure from the In 1970, Borman became a consultant to the airline Eastern before holding various senior positions there and also becoming its president. Bormann also served as a special envoy to the US President.
He received numerous awards, including the Congressional Space Medal of Honor. In 1990, Borman was inducted into the International Aerospace Hall of Fame and in 1993 into the US Astronaut Hall of Fame. Borman was married and had two sons and four grandchildren.