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three three

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two engine sequence start

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zero launch commit we have a lift off

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roger

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both control centers moscow and houston

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apollo houston i got two messages for

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you

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moscow is go for docking houston is go

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for docking it's up to you guys have fun

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all right it sounds good

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palomino relaxing

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system is ready

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less than five meters distance

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contact

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they are looking forward now

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okay turn on the camera hit the remote

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okay

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here

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okay

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glad to see you

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is

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new possibilities are opening up

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for

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fruitful development of scientific

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cooperation between countries and the

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peoples in the interests of of peace

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and progress of all humanity i wish you

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successful

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completion

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of the planned program

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and a safe

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let me

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call to express my very great admiration

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for your hard work your total dedication

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in preparing

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for this first joint flight

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it's taken us many years to open this

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door to useful cooperation in space

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between our two countries and i'm

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confident

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that today is not far off when

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space missions made

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possible

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by this first joint effort

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will be more or less commonplace

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and may i say in signing off here's to a

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soft landing thank you very much

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thank you mr president

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the total

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system we have demonstrated here the new

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docking device the rendezvous system

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using techniques in both countries the

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communications procedures and techniques

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could be available in the future if

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required not on an instance notice but

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it could be available

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so i think we have taken a great step

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that indeed we have opened a new era in

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the history of man on this

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99 hours 29 minutes phase elapsed time

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flight director frank littleton

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pulsing his flight controllers ecom

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reports everything looks fine

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go for the burn

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okay everything's up great up here

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the only thing we're concerned about is

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that you've got all your splashdown

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parties coordinated over well i've

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been working on that

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you and valerie kubassoff were selected

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for a project that many would say was as

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significant as perhaps landing on the

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moon

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that to link up your soyuz vehicle with

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the american apollo spacecraft in this

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technical concept and a

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born out of a political gesture and a

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technical demonstration

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what did you think

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of

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this project what its goals were and

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what you thought the accomplishments

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would be when you and valerie were

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i can only say that i'm very glad

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that

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the

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government

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uh while addressing

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different countries yes our government

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said that the crew

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performed

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flawlessly

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flawless that's the actual word that

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they used

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and

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we should not forget about the specifics

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of that particular time

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cold war

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the humankind was

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understood the situation that was going

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on on the ground

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and they managed to

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make certain steps to have fixed this

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situation to grow some seed of trust

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that

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people managed to

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treat each other differently i think

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this program turned out to be a lot more

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important for our countries and

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particularly the political aspects

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because

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six billion people were watching us and

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they could realize that there is a way

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to live differently there is a way to

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deal with each other in a different

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manner well actually you and your

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crewmates um

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felt at the time

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that you were about to do something very

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significant i think that would change

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u.s russian relations didn't you

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that's exactly what it was

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i strongly felt that i

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received a task

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which was uh really

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a task with huge magnitude

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we were supposed to show the entire

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world that we are human beings

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that we work together in the most

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sophisticated area of human activities

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it was a very important task and the

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rest of the people involved in the

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preparations for this flight they were

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thinking exactly along the same lines

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and there were thousands literally

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thousands of people in both countries

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who were involved and they made

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everything they could and made it really

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conducive for us to succeed

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and prior to the launch and during the

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during the docking and everything was

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designed on the ground

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between our countries and our respective

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experts from both countries which

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let us actually succeed

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alexi many many people say that the

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close personal bond that you forged with

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tom stafford

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was the key to the success of apollo

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soyuz

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you call each other brothers to this day

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you correspond with one another

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frequently you talk to one another

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frequently

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what was the most important factor that

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emerged from your personality

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tom stafford's personality that created

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a friendship

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and a bond that made this mission

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successful and

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way prior to soyuz

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just pretty much like media always do

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they select the best players

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during the hockey tournament

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or the best

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crew members

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that

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deserve flying

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and

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when we have started

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as a best crew and i met him for the

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first time in 1970

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he

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came to russia to

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be in moscow during the funeral of my

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backup crew the bravolsky volca van

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passaive he he decided to come to moscow

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by himself although

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the state department

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did not allow him to do so

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and those kinds of things used to be

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frowned upon back then but he came to

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moscow anyway

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i was asked to join him and to spend

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more time with him

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while in moscow and i started taking

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care of him

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he's been calling me a brother for a

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long long time

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and i don't have any close relatives no

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no parents

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they all are gone

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and

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when you have all of a sudden a brother

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it's uh

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it just makes

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for me and we have common children i

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helped tom adopt two sons from russia

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and now they are grown up guys they are

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students

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their surname is stafford

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my

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granddaughter

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his name is karina just the same way as

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uh

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lot in common we meet

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two three times a year

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alexa when you look back at

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apollo soyuz four decades ago

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you look today at the international

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space station which many people

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believe would not have been possible

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without apollo soyuz what do you see

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as the legacy

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of your career

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that particular flight and where are we

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after our flight

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they have done everything very

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accurately

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which was basically the continuation of

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what we

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have started

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and it was a part of a cooperation

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between

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you uh

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sa and russia

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and then we logically arrived at the

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idea of putting together an

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international

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space station 400 tons of weight

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one and a half hectare of solar arrays

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thousand cubic meters of habitable space

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russian

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u.s

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segment

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this is the area where we have permanent

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presence of three to six crew members

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at all times and we used to have as many

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as nine crew members at some point and

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this is continuation of what we have

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been doing all our lives and i was

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actively working

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in the area of training of those crew

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members eventually

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getting into the international space

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station we're honored today to be joined

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by general tom stafford a legendary

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figure in human space flight history

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commander of apollo soyuz whose 40th

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anniversary is coming up here very

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shortly what did you think about apollo

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soyuz when it was first proposed and

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what did what did you think the ultimate

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objective would be

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i wasn't thinking so much where how far

256
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away down the road it would lead

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as i was

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well we can demonstrate

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to the world

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that two countries

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with different languages

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different units of measurements and

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certainly vastly

264
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different political

265
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systems

266
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could work together for a common goal

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but this would be a good

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thing it could demonstrate and

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help

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a lot of understanding

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in the world on what we're doing

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because of the close personal bond that

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you and alexi leonov forged

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many say that that was the ultimate

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success to apollo soyuz what was the

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most imp important factor between the

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two of you

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that emerged

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that bonded a friendship like no other

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we've ever seen in human space flight

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history

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knowing that

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this mission had to be a success

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and all that just our personalities it

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worked out great and today i consider

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alexi like a brother to me i was an only

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child

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so

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i call him boy brought

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and

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tell you how close the friendship has

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gotten

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his granddaughter

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was named karine

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and that's the name after my daughter

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and when my oldest daughter had her last

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boy

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her last son

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she named him alexi

300
00:22:37,029 --> 00:22:35,760
you were the master of rendezvous you

301
00:22:38,950 --> 00:22:37,039
had pulled off

302
00:22:40,630 --> 00:22:38,960
a number of rendezvous during gemini and

303
00:22:43,190 --> 00:22:40,640
apollo of course

304
00:22:45,110 --> 00:22:43,200
so from that aspect i don't think you

305
00:22:47,510 --> 00:22:45,120
believed that that was going to be a big

306
00:22:49,350 --> 00:22:47,520
issue what did you think

307
00:22:51,270 --> 00:22:49,360
was going to be the most intricate part

308
00:22:53,350 --> 00:22:51,280
of this mission from a technical

309
00:22:58,149 --> 00:22:53,360
standpoint

310
00:22:59,029 --> 00:22:58,159
uh two things

311
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one

312
00:23:06,149 --> 00:23:01,600
they flew at an atmosphere of sea level

313
00:23:08,789 --> 00:23:06,159
pressure you know 21 oxygen uh 79

314
00:23:12,070 --> 00:23:08,799
nitrogen where we flew with five pounds

315
00:23:14,070 --> 00:23:12,080
per square inch total of pure oxygen

316
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and then how we had to work this

317
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together

318
00:23:20,149 --> 00:23:17,679
and so that's where the docking module

319
00:23:22,149 --> 00:23:20,159
came in good we also use it as an

320
00:23:24,549 --> 00:23:22,159
airlock to go up and down and we got

321
00:23:26,950 --> 00:23:24,559
them to lower their pressure down

322
00:23:29,270 --> 00:23:26,960
you know over a period of two days to 10

323
00:23:31,029 --> 00:23:29,280
the lower 10 pounds and this doesn't

324
00:23:32,870 --> 00:23:31,039
hurt you just regular

325
00:23:35,909 --> 00:23:32,880
atmospheric mixture

326
00:23:38,549 --> 00:23:35,919
so that would that was uh one thing the

327
00:23:40,950 --> 00:23:38,559
other one was on the docking mechanism

328
00:23:43,190 --> 00:23:40,960
you know the main thing was not the

329
00:23:44,390 --> 00:23:43,200
engaged part but the latching and the

330
00:23:46,950 --> 00:23:44,400
whole board

331
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but it worked out beautiful

332
00:23:50,549 --> 00:23:48,400
and of course on the other side of the

333
00:23:52,789 --> 00:23:50,559
coin never far

334
00:23:55,430 --> 00:23:52,799
away was the whole importance of the

335
00:23:57,669 --> 00:23:55,440
political aspect of this and

336
00:23:59,990 --> 00:23:57,679
i just can't even imagine how you and

337
00:24:02,830 --> 00:24:00,000
your crewmates dealt with the political

338
00:24:05,909 --> 00:24:02,840
pressure of making this a success

339
00:24:07,350 --> 00:24:05,919
well what we said

340
00:24:08,310 --> 00:24:07,360
we taught

341
00:24:09,430 --> 00:24:08,320
thought

342
00:24:11,110 --> 00:24:09,440
that this

343
00:24:12,149 --> 00:24:11,120
would be

344
00:24:15,190 --> 00:24:12,159
you know

345
00:24:17,669 --> 00:24:15,200
just like a standard mission

346
00:24:18,870 --> 00:24:17,679
you think just like a test pilot

347
00:24:19,990 --> 00:24:18,880
and

348
00:24:25,510 --> 00:24:20,000
so

349
00:24:26,310 --> 00:24:25,520
side we kept politics completely out of

350
00:24:30,310 --> 00:24:26,320
it

351
00:24:33,669 --> 00:24:30,320
the mission

352
00:24:35,190 --> 00:24:33,679
and we're going to make it a success

353
00:24:36,470 --> 00:24:35,200
and then there's a moment of history

354
00:24:38,950 --> 00:24:36,480
docking

355
00:24:40,549 --> 00:24:38,960
so the two vehicles dock

356
00:24:43,269 --> 00:24:40,559
you're joined together first time in

357
00:24:46,149 --> 00:24:43,279
history did you feel at that point a

358
00:24:48,549 --> 00:24:46,159
sense of history at all no the main

359
00:24:49,830 --> 00:24:48,559
thing was to be sure with dot we got

360
00:24:53,430 --> 00:24:49,840
soft dock

361
00:24:55,110 --> 00:24:53,440
and i i greased it in just right on

362
00:24:57,269 --> 00:24:55,120
so there and then we had to have the

363
00:24:59,830 --> 00:24:57,279
hard dock with the other the la to

364
00:25:00,470 --> 00:24:59,840
retract then those lights just pull in

365
00:25:01,830 --> 00:25:00,480
and

366
00:25:05,750 --> 00:25:01,840
snap

367
00:25:09,350 --> 00:25:05,760
and we got a maturing or solid

368
00:25:11,830 --> 00:25:09,360
and so the hatch is open there's alexi

369
00:25:14,310 --> 00:25:11,840
and you both seem to be a bit reluctant

370
00:25:17,350 --> 00:25:14,320
to move toward one another until you all

371
00:25:19,990 --> 00:25:17,360
coaxed each other to shake hands

372
00:25:21,830 --> 00:25:20,000
what a moment was that one of the

373
00:25:24,630 --> 00:25:21,840
the greatest moments of your space

374
00:25:25,990 --> 00:25:24,640
flight career at that point

375
00:25:29,190 --> 00:25:26,000
i think so

376
00:25:29,990 --> 00:25:29,200
i i've had several great moments you

377
00:25:32,950 --> 00:25:30,000
know

378
00:25:34,549 --> 00:25:32,960
doing the first rendezvous in space

379
00:25:38,149 --> 00:25:34,559
first

380
00:25:40,390 --> 00:25:38,159
to go around the moon

381
00:25:42,149 --> 00:25:40,400
uh gene cernan's first space walk

382
00:25:43,430 --> 00:25:42,159
getting him back in was a great moment

383
00:25:44,549 --> 00:25:43,440
i'll tell you

384
00:25:48,149 --> 00:25:44,559
and

385
00:25:50,230 --> 00:25:48,159
so there's a few ones definitely

386
00:25:52,070 --> 00:25:50,240
you're right that that was really one of

387
00:25:53,110 --> 00:25:52,080
the great moments

388
00:25:54,950 --> 00:25:53,120
but again

389
00:25:57,510 --> 00:25:54,960
no thought of politics at that point

390
00:25:59,430 --> 00:25:57,520
here here an american and a soviet

391
00:26:01,830 --> 00:25:59,440
former adversaries are shaking hands in

392
00:26:04,230 --> 00:26:01,840
space together did you not feel

393
00:26:05,750 --> 00:26:04,240
some political accomplishment as well as

394
00:26:09,110 --> 00:26:05,760
just the technical

395
00:26:12,549 --> 00:26:09,120
amazing aspect of reaching this good

396
00:26:19,190 --> 00:26:15,269
now for some reason politics because to

397
00:26:21,110 --> 00:26:19,200
me here was a kind of a fellow crewman

398
00:26:23,590 --> 00:26:21,120
and also his

399
00:26:25,350 --> 00:26:23,600
other person valeri who had worked hard

400
00:26:28,870 --> 00:26:25,360
with us for two years

401
00:26:33,590 --> 00:26:28,880
and we'd accomplished it we'd done it

402
00:26:39,350 --> 00:26:36,230
you know this mission on apollo soyuz 40

403
00:26:41,990 --> 00:26:39,360
years ago is still considered by many

404
00:26:43,990 --> 00:26:42,000
almost universally as the key the

405
00:26:45,510 --> 00:26:44,000
birthplace if you will to the

406
00:26:47,909 --> 00:26:45,520
development and construction of the

407
00:26:49,750 --> 00:26:47,919
international space station

408
00:26:50,789 --> 00:26:49,760
did you ever believe that a laboratory

409
00:26:53,190 --> 00:26:50,799
of that

410
00:26:54,630 --> 00:26:53,200
magnitude and capability a city in the

411
00:26:56,149 --> 00:26:54,640
sky if you will

412
00:26:58,950 --> 00:26:56,159
could be built and operated on a

413
00:27:01,750 --> 00:26:58,960
permanently occupied basis

414
00:27:03,909 --> 00:27:01,760
no i knew we'd do things in the future

415
00:27:06,149 --> 00:27:03,919
i was very optimistic we'd go on and do

416
00:27:07,510 --> 00:27:06,159
some more things like the shuttle was

417
00:27:09,990 --> 00:27:07,520
planned

418
00:27:11,750 --> 00:27:10,000
and we'd have maybe a shuttle to a sius

419
00:27:13,830 --> 00:27:11,760
or maybe a new spacecraft would do

420
00:27:16,310 --> 00:27:13,840
something like that but

421
00:27:19,750 --> 00:27:16,320
to the magnitude that the space station

422
00:27:22,310 --> 00:27:19,760
is today nearly a million pounds and

423
00:27:23,830 --> 00:27:22,320
15 countries working together

424
00:27:25,990 --> 00:27:23,840
no i didn't

425
00:27:27,990 --> 00:27:26,000
think that i because you know just the

426
00:27:29,909 --> 00:27:28,000
united states and the russians that was

427
00:27:32,070 --> 00:27:29,919
part of me the soviet union was the only

428
00:27:33,029 --> 00:27:32,080
one that had the capability

429
00:27:36,310 --> 00:27:33,039
so

430
00:27:38,710 --> 00:27:36,320
but i think it's wonderful and i'm very

431
00:27:41,590 --> 00:27:38,720
glad honored i'm still involved

432
00:27:47,110 --> 00:27:44,630
the program and i chair the advisory

433
00:27:48,870 --> 00:27:47,120
committee for the

434
00:27:51,190 --> 00:27:48,880
international space station that's for

435
00:27:52,789 --> 00:27:51,200
safety and operational readiness and

436
00:27:55,269 --> 00:27:52,799
it's really started out with shallow

437
00:27:57,029 --> 00:27:55,279
mirror which was a natural extension

438
00:28:00,230 --> 00:27:57,039
and then from shalomer to the

439
00:28:03,750 --> 00:28:00,240
international space station

440
00:28:05,590 --> 00:28:03,760
this fall will mark the 15th anniversary

441
00:28:07,750 --> 00:28:05,600
of a permanent human occupancy on the

442
00:28:09,430 --> 00:28:07,760
space station which is remarkable in its

443
00:28:12,070 --> 00:28:09,440
own right

444
00:28:14,470 --> 00:28:12,080
as you look back

445
00:28:16,389 --> 00:28:14,480
in in the home stretch of the first two

446
00:28:17,990 --> 00:28:16,399
decades of the space station

447
00:28:20,310 --> 00:28:18,000
what do you think is the most important

448
00:28:22,470 --> 00:28:20,320
accomplishment of this complex this this

449
00:28:24,149 --> 00:28:22,480
global project

450
00:28:26,230 --> 00:28:24,159
well

451
00:28:28,470 --> 00:28:26,240
to me the most important

452
00:28:30,070 --> 00:28:28,480
part is bringing these 15 countries

453
00:28:32,789 --> 00:28:30,080
together

454
00:28:33,750 --> 00:28:32,799
and having been able to agree to work on

455
00:28:35,110 --> 00:28:33,760
things

456
00:28:38,070 --> 00:28:35,120
and see how

457
00:28:41,110 --> 00:28:38,080
in a way how flawlessly it's gone

458
00:28:43,430 --> 00:28:41,120
i look back now in a perspective back

459
00:28:45,190 --> 00:28:43,440
say over my shoulder in history

460
00:28:47,909 --> 00:28:45,200
so i think it's it was really wonderful

461
00:28:50,470 --> 00:28:47,919
i had the opportunity to work with alexi

462
00:28:53,029 --> 00:28:50,480
leonov and vlory kubasov

463
00:28:53,830 --> 00:28:53,039
the other soviet peoples now russian