Astronaut John Glenn to be interred at Arlington Cemetery

john-glenn

FILE - In this Jan. 25, 2012, file photo, former astronaut and Sen. John Glenn poses for a photo during an interview at his office in Columbus, Ohio. Glenn died on Dec. 8, 2016 at age 95. He will be interred Wednesday, April 5, 2017, in a small private ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia. (AP Photo/Jay LaPrete, File)

john-glenn

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — Final funeral rites for astronaut John Glenn will take place Thursday at Arlington National Cemetery.

His family and invited guests, including astronauts and dignitaries, will say goodbye to the first American to orbit Earth at a private service at the Old Post Chapel beginning at 9 a.m.

The U.S. Marine Corps will begin a live stream at 9:40 a.m. that will include a processional to the graveside by caisson, a flyover, a graveside service and taps. The event ends at 10:25 a.m.

Glenn died Dec. 8 at age 95.

Thousands of mourners visited his casket as it lay in repose at the Ohio Statehouse, and roughly 2,500 people attended a public “celebration of life” for the former fighter pilot, history-making astronaut and longtime Democratic U.S. senator from small-town Ohio.