Portrait of Swigert. Photo: NASA

Birth
Denver, Colorado, August 30, 1931.

Physical description
Blond hair; blue eyes; height: 5' 11.5" inches; weight: 180 pounds.

Education
Attended Regis and East High Schools in Denver; received Bachelor of Science degree in Mechanical Engineering from University of Colorado, 1953; Master of Science in Aerospace Science from Rensselear Polytechnic Institute, 1965; Master of Business Administration from the University of Hartford, 1967.

Recreational Interests
An avid sports enthusiast who enjoys golf, handball, bowling, skiing, swimming and basketball. His hobbies include photography.

Organizations
Fellow of the American Astronautical Society; Associate Fellow of the Society of Experimental Test Pilots and the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics; and member of the Quiet Birdmen, Phi Gamma Delta, Pi Tau Sigma and Sigma Tau.

Special Honors
The AIAA Octave Chanute Award for 1966 (for his participation in demonstration the Rogallo Wing as a feasible landing system for returning space vehicles and astronauts).

Experience
Swigert served with the Air Force from 1953 to 1956, including a tour of duty as a fight pilot in Japan and Korea. He also served as a jet fighter pilot with the Connecticut Air National Guard (1960 to 1965). He has logged over 8,000 hours of flight time, of which more than 6,430 hours are in jet aircraft.

Swigert was one of 19 Astronauts selected by NASA in 1966. He served as a member of the astronaut support crews for the Apollo 7 and Apollo 11 missions. He was next assigned to the Apollo 13 back-up crew and subsequently replaced prime crewman, Thomas K. Mattingly as Command Module Pilot 24 hours prior to flight, following Mattingly's exposure to German measles. In completing his first space flight, Swigert logged a total of 142 hours and 54 minutes.