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Apollo 13 Mission Commander, Astronaut Jim Lavel has died. He was 97 years old.
His family said in a statement on Friday, “We are saddened to announce the passage of the passage of our beloved father, USN captain James A. ‘Jim’, a naval pilot and officer, astronaut, leader and astronaut.”
“We are very proud of his amazing life and career achievements, which are exposed by his mythological leadership in leading the human space flight,” the family statements continued. “But, for all of us, he was father, grandfather and our family leader. The most important thing is that he was our hero. We were his unwavering optimism, his feeling of humor, and the way he realized each of us that we can do impossible. He was really one kind.”
Apollo 13 astronaut Jim Lavel has died. He was 97 years old. (Paul Arculeta/Getty Images)
Lavel was part of a three-member crew in 1970, which safely returned to Earth after a space Emergency.
He was played by Tom Hax in the 1995 film.
