(CNN) — William “Bill” Anders, a NASA astronaut who was part of the 1968 Apollo 8 crew and who was one of the first three people to orbit the Moon, died in a plane crash in Washington state, according to his son, Gregory Anders. He was 90 years old.
“My dad died in a plane crash in the San Juan Islands,” Anders told CNN on Friday night.
The San Juan County Sheriff’s Office said in a news release that a plane crashed off the coast of Jones Island.
Astronaut William Anders. (Credit: NASA)
The Sheriff’s Office said its dispatch center received an initial report around 11:40 a.m. PT, stating that an “older model aircraft was flying from north to south and then fell into the water near the north end of Jones Island and sank down”.
“The family is devastated and saddened by the loss of a great driver,” Anders’ son said.
The San Juan Islands are located about 90 miles (144 kilometers) north of Seattle.
William Anders took the iconic photo known as “Earthrise” while on the Apollo 8 mission.
Taken aboard Apollo 8 by Bill Anders, this iconic image shows Earth peeking out from beyond the lunar surface as the first manned spacecraft circumnavigated the Moon, with astronauts Anders, Frank Borman and Jim Lovell on board. (William Anders/NASA)
The U.S. Coast Guard later announced that the pilot’s body was recovered by a dive team after an hours-long search that involved multiple agencies and covered 215 nautical miles.
William Anders, born on October 17, 1933 in Hong Kong, graduated from the United States Naval Academy in 1955 and, after being commissioned in the United States Air Force, earned his pilot wings the following year, according to the site Naval Academy website.
Anders served as a fighter pilot in Air Defense Command all-weather interception squadrons in California and Iceland, according to NASA and the U.S. Naval Academy.
While at the Air Force Weapons Laboratory in New Mexico, Anders was responsible for managing nuclear reactor shielding and radiation effects programs, his NASA biography states.
This text was originally published on June 7 and has been updated
