r/ConspiracyUniverse

Retired United States Air Force Colonel Ross Dedrickson claimed that an extraterrestrial spacecraft went to the aid of Apollo 13 after the mission suffered its catastrophic in flight emergency.

Apollo 13 launched on April 11, 1970, with astronauts Jim Lovell, Jack Swigert and Fred Haise aboard.

The planned lunar landing was abandoned after an oxygen tank explosion severely damaged the spacecraft approximately 56 hours into the mission.

Dedrickson said he learned of an additional and publicly unacknowledged part of the story after retiring from the Air Force.

He explained that he continued to maintain contact with friends and associates connected to military air defense and space operations.

According to Dedrickson, a Colonel Parker told him that a spacecraft had gone to the rescue of Apollo 13.

Dedrickson said he later confirmed the account, although he did not explain who provided the additional confirmation or what evidence he examined.

He claimed that the unidentified spacecraft accompanied Apollo 13 during its journey around the Moon and remained with it during the return to Earth.

Dedrickson also made a more extraordinary claim.

He said that on two occasions, those involved believed it might become necessary to transfer the Apollo 13 astronauts from their damaged spacecraft into the other vehicle.

According to his account, that transfer was ultimately not required because the unknown craft remained nearby and watched Apollo 13 return safely to Earth.

The evidentiary limitations are significant.

Dedrickson did not claim to have personally observed the alleged spacecraft.

He attributed the information initially to Colonel Parker and said only that he later confirmed it.

The excerpt does not identify Parker’s full name, position, unit or exact involvement in Apollo 13 operations.

It also does not identify the individuals who supposedly considered transferring the astronauts, explain how communication with the other craft was established or provide mission recordings, radar data, tracking records or photographs.

NASA’s documented account explains Apollo 13’s survival through the use of the Aquarius lunar module as a lifeboat, emergency procedures performed by the crew and extensive technical support from Mission Control.

The publicly available mission report and review board findings do not describe an unidentified spacecraft accompanying the mission or offering to receive the crew.

That does not by itself disprove Dedrickson’s allegation of a concealed event, but it means the claim currently rests on his recollection of information received through unnamed or incompletely identified military contacts.

The distinction is important.

Dedrickson presents the story as information he obtained and later verified through his network.

He does not present it as something he personally witnessed, and the underlying corroborating evidence is not made available in this interview.

The key questions are:

Who was Colonel Parker and what access did he have to Apollo 13 tracking or recovery operations?

How did Dedrickson independently confirm the account?

Which organization allegedly tracked the accompanying craft?

Who considered transferring the crew and how would such a transfer have been conducted?

Do any radar records, mission communications or classified reports document the alleged escort?

If supporting records exist, the claim would add an extraordinary hidden dimension to one of the most extensively documented emergencies in the history of human spaceflight.

Until those records or independently identifiable witnesses emerge, it remains an extraordinary secondhand military claim rather than an established part of the Apollo 13 record.

Click below to access the sources and related material:

1. Full interview with Colonel Ross Dedrickson:
2. Atlas of Mystery post on X: