Fifty-some years is a long time. When you think about the sheer audacity of the Apollo 13 mission—that "successful failure" that gripped the world in April 1970—it feels like ancient history to some and a vivid memory to others. People often wonder about the men who sat in that freezing, cramped Command Module Odyssey while the world held its breath. Honestly, when you look at the Apollo 13 crew still alive today, you’re looking at a dwindling group of legends who redefined what it means to keep your cool under literal life-and-death pressure.
The mission was supposed to be a routine (if anything in space is routine) lunar landing at the Fra Mauro highlands. Then the oxygen tank blew. "Houston, we've had a problem." It wasn't just a movie line; it was a death sentence that they somehow managed to commute through sheer engineering grit.
The current status of the Apollo 13 astronauts
As of right now, two of the three men who flew that harrowing mission are still with us. James "Jim" Lovell and Fred Haise are the survivors. Jack Swigert, the Command Module Pilot who was a last-minute replacement for Ken Mattingly, passed away way too young back in 1982.
It’s kind of wild to think about.
Lovell is in his mid-90s now. Haise is in his 90s too. These guys aren't just names in a history book; they are the living embodiment of an era where we did things that seemed impossible because we didn't know any better than to try. When people search for information on the Apollo 13 crew still alive, they're usually looking for a connection to that golden age of exploration. They want to know if the heroes are still here to tell the tale.
Jim Lovell: The Commander who stayed calm
Jim Lovell is a household name, thanks in no small part to Tom Hanks portraying him in the 1995 Ron Howard film. But the real Lovell? He’s even more impressive. By the time Apollo 13 rolled around, Lovell was a space veteran. He’d already flown Gemini 7, Gemini 12, and Apollo 8—the first mission to ever circle the Moon.
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He's currently 97 years old.
Think about that. He saw the transition from propeller planes to the Space Shuttle and now to SpaceX. Lovell was the one who had to tell his crew to stop worrying about the Moon and start worrying about the CO2 levels. He’s lived a quiet, dignified life post-NASA, often appearing at events to remind us that teamwork isn't just a corporate buzzword; it’s the thing that keeps you from suffocating in a vacuum. He once famously remarked that he looked at his thumb and realized it could cover the entire Earth, and everything he’d ever known was behind that one digit. That kind of perspective stays with a person.
Fred Haise: The Lunar Module Pilot who never walked the Moon
Fred Haise is often the "forgotten" member of the trio for casual fans, which is honestly a shame. He was the guy who was supposed to walk on the lunar surface while Lovell joined him. Instead, he spent the mission battling a nasty urinary tract infection and freezing temperatures in the Lunar Module Aquarius.
Haise is 92.
After Apollo 13, he didn't just retire. He stayed with NASA and actually commanded the Space Shuttle Enterprise during its approach and landing tests. He’s a test pilot to his core. If you ever hear him speak, he’s incredibly technical, humble, and sharp. He’s spent much of his later years helping with the Infinity Science Center in Mississippi. He’s a guy who deeply cares about the next generation of engineers. He knows better than anyone that when the hardware fails, the only thing you have left is the math and the person sitting next to you.
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Why Jack Swigert isn't on the list
It’s a bit of a tragedy, really. Jack Swigert was the "rookie" who got bumped up from the backup crew 72 hours before launch because Ken Mattingly was exposed to the measles. Swigert performed flawlessly during the crisis. He was the one who actually made the "Houston" call.
He died in December 1982.
He was only 51. It wasn't a space accident that took him, but bone cancer. He had just been elected to Congress for Colorado's 6th district but died before he could even be sworn in. It’s one of those "life isn't fair" moments in history. Because he passed away so soon after the mission relative to the others, a lot of the modern retrospectives focus on Lovell and Haise. But Swigert was the glue in the Command Module.
The "Fourth Man" and the support crew
When we talk about the Apollo 13 crew still alive, we usually mean the guys in the capsule. But there were others. Ken Mattingly, the man Swigert replaced, was arguably just as vital to their survival. He spent those sleepless days in the simulators in Houston, figuring out how to power up a "dead" ship without blowing the circuits.
Mattingly passed away recently, in October 2023, at the age of 87.
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His death felt like the end of a specific chapter. He was the guy who stayed behind and saved them from the ground. Then you have the Flight Directors like Gene Kranz. Kranz is still alive, and his "Failure is not an option" mantra (which, fun fact, was actually coined by the movie writers but embraced by him later) remains the gold standard for leadership.
Survival against the odds
The math of Apollo 13 shouldn't have worked. They were 200,000 miles from home with a blown side of their ship and limited power. The fact that two of these men are still walking the Earth in 2026 is a miracle of both 1970s engineering and modern medicine.
They lived through:
- A 200°F temperature swing.
- The "mailbox" carbon dioxide scrubber hack.
- Manual burn calculations using the Earth's terminator line as a guide.
- A reentry that lasted longer than anyone expected due to a shallow angle.
What you can learn from the survivors today
If you’re looking for actionable insights from the lives of Jim Lovell and Fred Haise, it’s not about how to fly a Saturn V rocket. It’s about "contingency thinking."
Lovell often talks about how they didn't panic because panic doesn't solve problems. They broke the catastrophe down into small, manageable tasks. Can we breathe? Yes, for now. Can we steer? Yes, for now.
Practical Takeaways from the Apollo 13 Legacy
- Work the problem, not the fear. When the tank blew, they didn't spend three hours screaming. They looked at the gauges. In your own life, when something goes sideways, stop and look at the "gauges" of your situation before reacting.
- The backup is the hero. Swigert and Mattingly prove that the person who is "second string" needs to be just as prepared as the starter.
- Communication is oxygen. The only reason the Apollo 13 crew still alive actually made it home was the constant, clear loop of information between the ship and Mission Control. If they had hidden their problems or lied about their status, they would have drifted into deep space forever.
- Perspective is permanent. Both Lovell and Haise have lived long lives characterized by a lack of small-mindedness. When you've seen the Earth as a tiny blue marble, you tend not to sweat the traffic jams or the slow internet.
Next Steps for Enthusiasts:
If you want to honor the legacy of the remaining crew, visit the Cosmosphere in Hutchinson, Kansas. That’s where the Odyssey Command Module is kept. It’s been painstakingly restored. You can also read Lovell’s book Lost Moon (the basis for the movie) or Fred Haise’s memoir Never Panic Early. They offer a granular, human look at the crisis that a 2-hour movie just can't capture. Don't just watch the film—read the transcripts. Seeing the actual technical jargon exchanged between these men while they were literally freezing to death gives you a whole new respect for the term "professionalism."