A Plano East Senior High School graduate was one of the Navy airmen who airlifted the Artemis II crew to safety. He called it his “proudest accomplishment.”
PLANO, Texas — A North Texas native played an integral role in the recovery of the Artemis II crew when they landed in the ocean off the coast of San Diego.
Daniel Olson, from Plano, was among the sailors who supported the recovery of the crew and the Orion space capsule from the Pacific Ocean off the coast of San Diego, the Navy Office of Community Outreach said in a press release.
Olson graduated from Plano East Senior High School in 2020 and was assigned to Helicopter Sea Combat Squadron (HSC) 23, which airlifted the Artemis II crew back to USS John P. Murtha for further evaluations and then back to land.
“My proudest accomplishment is being part of this mission in helping NASA,” Olson said in the release. “One of the smaller things I’m proud of is being able to work hand-in-hand with my peers without really needing to hold their hand, even though I’m still new.”
He joined the Navy one year ago and serves as an aviation electrician’s mate, the press release states.
“I joined the Navy because I wanted to do more and see more in my life,” Olson said. “This includes having stories I can pass down in my family.”
NASA’s Artemis II mission sent four astronauts on a ten-day flight around the moon in the Orion space capsule. The crew splashed down just after 5 p.m. on April 10 in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of San Diego, where Navy sailors were waiting.