Image source: NASA.
On this date in 1993, Donald Kent ‘Deke’ Slayton died. One of the original ‘Mercury 7’ astronauts, he was slated to fly the third Mercury mission; however, he was grounded due to a medical issue. He became NASA’s Astronaut Commander, assigning crews for the Apollo lunar landings. He would ultimately fly to space on the Apollo/Soyuz flight in 1975, spending just over 9 days in space.