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| 1966 GT-9 Orbit Covers cachet cover with launch day postmark June 3, 1966. Signed by Eugene Cernan and Thomas Stafford. |
Gemini 9A (GT-9A), launched on June 3, 1966, was the seventh Gemini manned flight crewed by Thomas P. Stafford and Eugene Cernan.
The original crew for Gemini 9, command pilot Elliot See and pilot Charles Bassett, were killed in a crash on February 28, 1966 while flying a T-38 jet trainer to the McDonnell Aircraft plant in St. Louis, Missouri to inspect their spacecraft. Their deaths promoted the backup crew, Thomas P. Stafford and Eugene Cernan, to the prime crew. The mission was renamed Gemini 9A after the original May 17 launch was scrubbed when the mission's Agena Target Vehicle was destroyed after a launch failure. Gemini 9A was flown between June 3 to 6, 1966, after launch of the backup Augmented Target Docking Adaptor (ATDA). Stafford and Cernan rendezvoused with the ATDA, but were unable to dock with it because the nose fairing failed to eject from the docking target due to a launch preparation error. Cernan performed a two-hour extravehicular activity, during which it was planned for him to demonstrate free flight in a self-contained rocket pack, the USAF Astronaut Maneuvering Unit. He was unable to accomplish this due to stress, fatigue, and overheating.
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| Photo: Eugene Cernan and Thomas Stafford at news conference, May 23, 1966. |
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| Gemini 9 official NASA cachet on cover with a Kennedy Space Center machine cancel, signed by Thomas Stafford and Eugene Cernan. |
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Photo: Thomas Stafford carrying a large mock match to light the fire.
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| Photo: Gemini crew at Mission Control Center during the first day of the Gemini 9 flight on June 3, 1966. From left to right, Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin, James Lovell and Richard Gordon. |
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| Gemini 9 official NASA cachet on cover with a Kennedy Space Center hand cancel. |
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| Gemini 9 NASA cachet proof (in maroon) on cover postmarked at Cape Canaveral on launch day, June 3, 1966. |
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Photo: Rendezvous with the Augmented Target Docking Adaptor (ATDA). As the crew got closer, they found the ATDA to be in a slow rotation, with the conical nose shroud still attached, the two pieces hanging agape at the front like a giant, open jaw. Stafford described "It looks like an angry alligator out here rotating around".
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| Photo: "Navy helicopters hovered over astronauts Eugene Cernan (left) and Thomas Stafford after they landed the Gemini 9 spacecraft Monday in the Atlantic. A helicopter picked up the capsule shortly after this picture was taken and carried it and the spacemen to the deck of the aircraft carrier Wasp. AP Wirephoto. June 6, 1966." |
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| Gemini 9 USS Wasp Captain's covers here in two envelope sizes. |
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| Photo: Eugene Cernan, Thomas Stafford and their spacecraft on the deck of USS Wasp. |
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| Gemini 9 USS Wasp recovery ship cover with Beck rubber stamped cachet, signed by Thomas Stafford and Eugene Cernan. |
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| Gemini 9 USS Wasp recovery ship cover with a printed "United States Aircraft Carrier" cachet and Beck rubber stamped cachet. |
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| Beck printed cachet cover B651 and B657 were intended for USS Wasp, but some B652, B655 and B656 with USS Wasp cancel have been observed. |
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| Photo: "Astronaut who rode Gemini 9 space capsule try out an old form of transportation as they ride a stagecoach in Oklahoma City, Okla. Eugene Cernan waves as he rides with Tom Stafford. Their driver, Clarence McKenzie, rode them to the Cowboy Hall of Fame building. The astronauts were honored in ceremonies Friday. Stafford is a native of Weatherford, Okla. AP Wirephoto. July 10, 1966." |
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| Photo: Thomas Stafford and Eugene Cernan showing the "angry alligator" at the news conference, June 17, 1966. |
(Reference from
Gemini 9A)
