US astronaut Jim Lovell, commander of Apollo 13, dead at 97

The American astronaut Jim Lovell, the commander of the Moon mission of Apollo 13 who almost ended in disaster in 1970 after an explosion in mid-vol, died at the age of 97, NASA announced on Friday.

The former navy pilot, who was represented by actor Tom Hanks in the 1995 film “Apollo 13”, died in a suburb of Chicago on Thursday, the American space agency said in a statement.

The “life and the work of the astronaut inspired millions of people during the decades,” said NASA, praising its “character and firm courage”.

Lovell went to the moon twice but never walked on the lunar surface.

However, he is considered one of the greats of the American space program after saving a mission that changed on the verge of disaster while the world looked in suspense below.

“There are people who dare, who dream, and who lead others to the places where we are not going ourselves,” said Hanks in an Instagram post.

“Jim Lovell, who had long been further in space and longer than any other person on our planet, was this kind of guy.”

“Houston, we had a problem”

Launched on April 11, 1970 – The months after Neil Armstrong became the first person to walk on the Moon – Apollo 13 was intended to be the third lunar landing of humanity.

The plan was that Lovell would walk on the moon.

The mission, which was also equipped by astronauts Jack Swigert and Fred Haise, was already considered quite routine.

Then an oxygen tank exploded on the way.

The disaster prompted Swigert to say control of the mission: “Houston, we had a problem.”

Lovell then repeated the sentence, which is slightly different from that used in the film Ron Howard, according to NASA.

The three astronauts and the crew on the ground rushed to find a solution.

The United States has followed the chaotic odyssey of the soil, fearing that the country will lose its first astronauts in space.

About 200,000 miles from the earth, the crew was forced to take shelter in their lunar module, in the moon and come back to earth quickly.

The direction made up of Lovell – which was nicknamed “Smilin ‘Jim” – and the ingenuity of the NASA team on the field managed to bring the crew safely home.

Lovell received the presidential medal of freedom, but has never returned to space.

‘Our hero’

Born March 25, 1928 in Cleveland, Ohio, Lovell worked as a navy pilot before joining NASA.

He was one of the three astronauts who became the first people to orbit the moon during the Apollo 8 mission in 1968.

The mission also took the famous image “Earthrise”, in which the blue planet leaves beyond the moon.

Lovell’s family said they were “extremely proud of her life and career,” said a statement published by NASA.

“But, for all of us, he was dad, grandfather and the head of our family. Most importantly, he was our hero,” added the press release.

“We will miss his unwavering optimism, his sense of humor and the way he made that each of us felt that we could do the impossible.”

© 2025 AFP