Simple question about the speed of atmosphere

This question is for those cranks who hallucinate gravity waves
and a speed of force.
I was just watching the space shuttle (Endeavour) on NASA TV
on its final re-entry, and I was wondering if the lunatics could tell
us what the speed of atmosphere is as the shuttle experiences a
force slowing its speed. Is the speed of atmospheric force waves
c or Mach 1? What does it have to do with slowing the shuttle
from 17000 mph to zero as the parachute is finally deployed on
the runway?
Perhaps morons like Wormley know the answer.