We Have Capture: Tom Stafford and the Space Race

by Thomas P. Stafford, Michael Cassutt

What an amazing career. Tom Stafford attained the highest speed ever reached by a test pilot (28,547 mph), carried a cosmonaut’s coffin with Soviet Secretary Leonid Brezhnev, led the team that designed the sequence of missions leading to the original lunar landing, and drafted the original specifications for the B-2 stealth bomber on a piece of hotel stationery. But his crowning achievement was surely his role as America’s unofficial space ambassador to the Soviet Union during the darkest days of the Cold War.

In this lively memoir written with Michael Cassutt, Stafford begins by recounting his early successes as a test pilot, Gemini and Apollo astronaut, and USAF general. As President Nixon's stand-in at the 1971 Soviet funeral for three cosmonauts, he opened the door to the possibility of cooperation in space between Russians and Americans. Stafford's Apollo-Soyuz team was the first group of Americans to work at the cosmonaut training center, and also the first to visit Baikonur, the top-secret Soviet launch center, in 1974. His 17 July 1975 “handshake in space” with Soviet commander Alexei Leonov (who became a lifelong friend) proved to the world that the two opposing countries could indeed work successfully together.

Stafford has continued in this leadership role right up to the present, participating in designing and evaluating the Space Shuttle, Mir, and the International Space Station. He is truly an American hero who personifies the broadest spirit of exploration and cooperation.

Genres: Space, Biography, Nonfiction, Science, History, Autobiography

302 pages, Paperback

First published September 17, 2002

About the author

Thomas Patten Stafford was a retired American Air Force Lieutenant general and former NASA astronaut.

Reviews

[Michael O'Neal · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great historical exposition of the US Space Program from one of America's true space icons, Tom Stafford. His insights and highlights of the space race with the Russians, as well as the eventual cooperative missions was very informative. If you like memoirs of the astronauts and reading history concerning the space program, you will find this a good read. However, I found the book to be very "matter-of-fact." The human drama was often glossed over at the detriment of making this book a more interesting read. Nonetheless, I am glad I read it.

[Kirk Lowery · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was an interesting read: the US space program from Mercury on was not problem free; indeed, most of the problems were not well-publicized. Stafford, of course, was a major player, even after he retired from NASA. NASA has always had issues with bureaucracy, whether with the armed forces or with its own. We must never forget that NASA is a government organization. As such, it is amazing it has done as well as it has. I was also impressed with the extensive education the astronauts work at. They never stop learning!

[Brian · Rating 3 out of 5]

America's interaction with the Russian Space Program was the most informative aspect of this book for me. I also found the history of the Gemini and Apollo mission development and training to very interesting.

[Greg · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very interesting content but written in a wat that was tough to read in places. Tom Stafford is a great astronaut and American, but he's definitly not a great writer.

[Russ · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed the book. I thought it was a great history of the U.S. Space program from someone who was around for a really interesting chunk of it. It also covered what he knew of the Soviet space program and how what was reported by the Soviets was often different from what really happened. It covered the author's pre-astronaut test pilot school and Air Force days, which was entertaining as well.

I knocked it down a star, however, because after about 80% of the way through the book, when the author retires from being an active astronaut, it just lost all of its interest for me. From that point on there was a lot of discussion of reports that were written, budget decisions and that kind of administrative information that really just didn't interest me as much as the first 4/5 of the book did. Additionally, there is often a whole string of names given that seem to have no bearing on anything - it's as if the author was trying to list every single person he came into contact with - and it really drags down the narrative. I found myself skimming the last 20% of the book, occasionally finding some interesting information but mostly just waiting for it to be done.

So, my recommendation is to read the book - it's highly entertaining and informative - up until he leaves active spaceflight status. You won't miss anything and will get all the "good parts".

[Jim Dawdy · Rating 5 out of 5]

An indepth look at a great leader

This was a truly excellent read. I had not been aware of General Staffords wide and significant involvement with our entire space program. His contribution to the mutual successes of both the U.S and the Soviet/Russian programs was both enlightening as well as making me, again proud to be an American. The book reads well, is fun to read and covers every aspect of the many facets of space exploration. I am so proud to have known and wrked for Tom Stafford. I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in how this great country worked and led in the exploration of space.

[Ethan Symon · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is a pretty easy read and a great choice if you have read other astronaut autobiographies, as Stafford does not get into much detail of things already written. He does get into great detail of his own experiences, especially his relationship with the Russian space program which is interesting.

[Dmitri Isaenkov · Rating 5 out of 5]

Отличные мемуары от полётов на "Джемини" до начала строительства МКС.

[Joost · Rating 1 out of 5]

I own all the books written by astronauts from the Apollo era.
This is by far the worst written one. And I already think there are a few bad ones among them.
What didn't help was the "I am bigger and better and bolder" attitude. He really thinks he saved programs and started careers, wich might be true, but there are more people involved than mr. Stafford to do those things, wich he forgets to mention most of the times.
There where some pieces of information that were new and wich I will double check from other sources. Parts of it might be true 😏