WIKIARCHIVES.SPACE

U.S. Navy helicopter crewmembers assist the Apollo 9 astronauts during recovery operations just after splashdown. Astronaut James A. McDivitt, mission commander, is in the Billy Pugh net about to aboard the helicopter. McDivitt was the third of the astronauts to egress the command module (out of frame). Also on the mission were astronauts David R. Scott, command module pilot; and Russell L. Schweickart, lunar module pilot. The three rehearsed in Earth orbit the transportation and docking maneuvers necessary to occur in lunar orbit in order for future crews to land on the moon's surface. Splashdown occurred at 12:00:53 p.m. (EST), March 13, 1969, only 4.5 nautical miles from the prime recovery ship, USS Guadalcanal, to conclude a successful 10-day mission.