May 16, 1963, President Kennedy telephoned his congratulations to Major Gordon Cooper minutes after he emerged from the space capsule Faith 7 tonight. He termed Major Cooper’s orbital trip “a great flight” and invited the astronaut and his family to the White House Monday. The President had watched television in the White House during the final stages of the historic flight. When Major Cooper landed in the Pacific, Mr. Kennedy went to his office, where an open radiotelephone line to the U.S.S. Kearsarge, the pickup vessel, had been maintained. Reporters were admitted to the office, and at 8 p.m. the President was in conversation with the astronaut. “I want to congratulate you,” the President said. “That was a great flight.” “Thank you very much,” the astronaut replied. “We talked with your wife,” the President continued, “and she seemed to stand it very well. We are looking forward to seeing you here on Monday. But we are very proud of you.” “Thank you, sir,” Major Cooper responded. “It was a good flight, and I enjoyed it.” “Good, fine,” the President said. After the conversation, the President spoke to the nation on radio and television, offering a statement in which he expressed pride in the space achievement, adding: “Peace has her victories as well as war, and this was one of the victories for the human spirit today.”
