Return to Flight

NASA Gives Go For Space Shuttle Return to Flight

NASA has cleared the Space Shuttle to Return to Flight. After a two-day
Flight Readiness Review meeting at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida,
senior managers approved a July 13 launch date for Discovery.

Commander Eileen Collins and her crew are scheduled to lift off at 3:51
p.m.
EDT on the first U.S. space flight since the February 2003 loss of the
Shuttle Columbia.

"After a vigorous, healthy discussion our team has come to a decision:
we're ready to go," NASA Administrator Michael Griffin said after the
meeting.
"The past two-and-a-half years have resulted in significant improvements
that have greatly reduced the risk of flying the Shuttle. But we should
never lose sight of the fact that space flight is risky.

"The Discovery mission, designated STS-114, is a test flight," Griffin
said, noting that astronauts will try out a host of new Space Shuttle
safety enhancements. In addition, Discovery will carry 15 tons of supplies
and replacement hardware to the International Space Station. July 13 is
the beginning of three weeks of possible launch days that run through July
31.

NASA's Associate Administrator for Space Operations, William Readdy,
chaired the Flight Readiness Review, the meeting that traditionally sets
launch dates and assesses the Shuttle's fitness to fly.

"Today's decision is an important milestone in returning the Shuttle to
service for the country. Our technical and engineering teams are
continuing their in-depth preparations to ensure that Eileen and her crew
have a successful mission," he said.

Joining Collins aboard Discovery will be pilot Jim Kelly and Mission
Specialists Steve Robinson, Andy Thomas, Wendy Lawrence, Charlie Camarda
and Soichi Noguchi, a Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency astronaut. The
crew will test design changes that will reduce the chances of damage to
the Shuttle, procedures for in-flight inspection of the Space Shuttle heat
shield, and repair techniques -- all in response to the Columbia accident.
The mission also features three spacewalks, including one to replace a
Space Station gyroscope.

Aboard the Station, Expedition 11 Commander Sergei Krikalev, a Russian
Federal Space Agency cosmonaut, and Flight Engineer and NASA Station
Science Officer John Phillips will greet Discovery. Krikalev and Phillips
are on a six-month mission. They have been aboard the Station since April
17.

Returning the Space Shuttle to flight is the first step in the Vision for
Space Exploration, a plan for humans to journey into the cosmos. The Space
Shuttle will be used to continue construction of the International Space
Station, a crucial test bed for exploration missions.

For more information on Return to Flight on the Internet, including
images, interviews with the crew and descriptions of the improvements to
the Space Shuttle, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/returntoflight