Dead Jim Lovell, led Apollo 13 mission and said 'Houston, we have a problem'

James Lovell, commander of Apollo 13 who helped turn a failed lunar mission into a triumph of improvised engineering, has died. He was 97 years old. Lovell died Thursday in Lake Forest, Illinois, according to Nasa in a statement today. "Jim's character and unwavering courage helped our nation reach the Moon and turned a potential tragedy into a success from which we learned so much," Nasa said, "We mourn his passing as we celebrate his achievements." Lovell flew in space four times: with Gemini 7, Gemini 12, Apollo 8 and Apollo 13.

In 1968, the Apollo 8 crew of Lovell, Frank Borman and William Anders were the first to leave Earth orbit and the first to fly and orbit the Moon. They failed to land, but put the United States ahead of the Soviets in the space race. It was, however, during the dramatic Apollo 13 flight in April 1970 that tragedy struck. Lovell was supposed to be the fifth man to walk on the Moon, but the Apollo 13 service module carrying him and two other astronauts suffered a sudden explosion of the oxygen tank during the journey to the Moon. The astronauts barely survived, spending four cold and wet days in the lunar module, which served as a lifeboat. "The thing I'd like people to remember is that, in a way, it was a great success," Lovell said during an interview in 1994, "not that we accomplished anything, but it was a success because we demonstrated the capability of NASA personnel."

A retired Navy captain known for his calm demeanour, Lovell told a Nasa historian that his encounter with death had scarred him deeply. "I no longer worry about crises," he declared in 1999, "every time I have a problem, I say to myself, 'I could have died in 1970. I'm still here. I'm still breathing'. So I don't worry about crises'. The account of the mission in the popular 1995 film "Apollo 13" brought Lovell, Fred Haise and Jack Swigert renewed fame, thanks in part to the character played by Lovell in the film who says, "Houston, we have a problem," a phrase he did not exactly utter.