The Explorers' Club, № MCI

Operation AXIOM: The Space Age—The 50th Anniversary of Apollo-Soyuz, Part III
20-24 July 1975: Cosmonauts Leonov & Kubasov landed in the the Kazakh S.S.R. (21 July); after three more days in orbit, astronauts Stafford, Brand, & Slayton splashed down in the Pacific & were recovered by the U.S.S. New Orleans; due to pilot error during re-entry, toxic fumes were drawn into the unnamed Apollo C.M., Brand lost consciousness, & the trio had to be hospitalized for a fortnight.

Commentary: Soyuz 18 landed in the Kazakh S.S.R. on 26 July 1975. Seven men were on low Earth orbit throughout the Apollo-Soyuz Test Project: Stafford, Leonov, Brand, Kubasov, & Slayton, & Soyuz 18 cosmonauts Pyotr Klimuk & Vitaly Sevastyanov aboard the Salyut 4 space station.

This was the last return of an American spacecraft until the landing of the Space Shuttle Columbia on 14 April 1981 at the end of S.T.S.-1; this was the last splashdown of an American capsule until the Crew Dragon Endeavour returned on 2 August 2020 at the end of Crew Demo-2.

Bonus! Space Age Song o' the Day: The Apollo-Soyuz Test Project
Lenka, "Trouble Is a Friend" from Lenka (Space Cadet Mike Papa DSKY)

Semper exploro.