General Charlie Duke

Astronaut Charlie Duke was one of the 19 astronauts selected by NASA in April 1966. Duke served as lunar module pilot of Apollo 16 from April 16 through 27, 1972. He was accompanied on the fifth manned lunar mission by John W. Young (spacecraft commander) and Thomas K. Mattingly II (command module pilot). Apollo 16 was the first scientific expedition to inspect, survey, and sample materials and surface features in the Descartes region of the rugged lunar highlands. Duke and Young commenced their lunar surface stay of 71 hours and 14 minutes by maneuvering the lunar module Orion to a landing on the rough Cayley plains. In three subsequent excursions onto the lunar surface, Duke and Young logged 20 hours and 15 minutes in extravehicular activities—involving the emplacement and activation of scientific equipment and experiments, the collection of nearly 213 pounds of rock and soil samples, and the evaluation and use of Rover 2 over the roughest and blockiest surface ever encountered on the moon.

Other Apollo 16 achievements include the largest payload placed in lunar orbit (79,109 pounds), first cosmic ray detector deployed on the lunar surface, first lunar observatory with the Far Ultraviolet Camera, and longest inflight extravehicular activity (EVA) from a command module during transearth coast (1 hour and 13 minutes). Apollo 16 concluded with a Pacific splashdown and subsequent recovery by the USS Ticonderoga.

With the completion of the Apollo 16 mission, General Duke has logged 265 hours and 51 minutes in space, which includes 21 hours and 28 minutes in extravehicular activities. Astronaut Duke also served as the backup lunar module pilot for the Apollo 13 and Apollo 17 flights.

In December 1975, Duke retired from NASA to enter private business in San Antonio. He entered the USAF Reserve in 1975 and served as Mobilization Augmentee to Commander AF Basic Military Training Center and to Commander USAF Recruiting Service. He was promoted to brigadier general in 1979 and retired in June 1986.

Charlie Duke is an active motivational and inspirational speaker. As an entrepreneur, business executive, military officer, and astronaut, he brings 50 years of experience to the speaker’s platform. His speeches are entertaining, informative, and sprinkled with humor. He has appeared on numerous TV shows and spoken for hundreds of associations, clubs, organizations, churches, and schools all over the world.

He and his wife reside in Greenville, South Carolina. They coauthored the book Moonwalker, released by Oliver-Nelson Publishers in March 1990, and they produced two DVDs: Moonwalker and Walk on the Moon, Walk with the Son.