LOS ANGELES Former Apollo astronaut Charles "Pete" Conrad Jr., who in 1969 became the third person to walk on the moon, died after crashing his motorcycle on a California highway, authorities said on Friday. He was 69. Conrad was riding his 1996 Harley Davidson on Thursday with his wife Nancy and a group of friends on a central California highway Thursday afternoon when he apparently lost control of his motorcycle on a curve and was thrown onto the pavement, said Ventura County deputy coroner James Baroni. He died about five hours later while being treated at a hospital for internal bleeding.

An exact cause of death has yet to be determined pending an autopsy. Baroni said Conrad's wife and friends, who were traveling with the space legend to Monterrey from his home in Huntington Beach, saw the accident and summoned an ambulance, but did not immediately realize the extent of his injuries. "Initially ... I don't think the family thought it was all that serious," Baroni said.

"He apparently flew off, landed on his chest, had some scrapes and bruises and a little difficulty breathing, but he was able to walk around and talk." Baroni said an ambulance crew brought him to a hospital emergency room where his blood pressure began to drop and his abdomen started to swell -- signs that he was losing blood. He was rushed into surgery, but his heart soon stopped beating.

Conrad, a veteran of four space flights, was best known for his role as commander of the second lunar landing on Nov. 19, 1969, on the Apollo 12 mission. U.S. astronaut Neil Armstrong became the first person on the moon on July 20, 1969, followed by Crewmate Edwin "Buzz" Aldrin on the Apollo 11 mission. In a 1996 interview with the Los Angeles Times, Conrad recalled that: "The Earth resembled a beautiful blue marble suspended against a black velvet blanket." Conrad also described himself to the paper as a thrill-seeker, saying he enjoyed "fast bikes, fast cars and anything that moves." Howard Benedict, director of the Astronaut Scholarship Foundation who knew Conrad and as a reporter covered the Apollo missions, said of the astronaut's death: "We have lost not only a friend but a strong voice for the future in space.

It was a shock to have him die so tragically." Benedict remembered Conrad's sense of humor, recalling his reaction when lightning struck Apollo 12: "He said `hey guys, I think we just got hit by lightning.' He said `this place was lit up like a pinball machine in here'." Benedict said when Conrad -- who at 5-foot-6 (1.67 meters) was the shortest member of the crew -- took his first step onto the moon, a drop of three feet (1 meter), "his first words were `whoopee. That may have been one small step for Neil but it was a heck of a long one for me." NASA administrator Daniel Goldin called Conrad a space "pioneer" who was deeply committed to his country." Conrad was born on June 2, 1930, and was interested in flight from childhood, building model airplanes and working in an airfield machine shop to pay for flying lessons at age 15. He piloted the Gemini 5 mission in 1965, commanded Gemini 11 in 1966 and Apollo 12 three years later.

In his final space mission, Conrad headed the first crew in the Skylab Space Station, which sustained damage during its launch. He and his crew repaired Skylab during three harrowing spacewalks, saving the program from potential failure. Conrad retired from the U.S. Navy and NASA in 1974. After leaving the space agency Conrad devoted his time to developing reusable spacecraft, first with aerospace giant McDonnell Douglas and later as chief executive officer of a Newport Beach, California, company called Universal Space Lines. Jim Albaugh, president of Boeing, which now owns McDonnell Douglas, said of Conrad: "He served his country so well and so enthusiastically as an astronaut, as a naval officer and as a private citizen.

"His accomplishments and legacy will endure." (Reuter)