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From: news@cit-vax.Caltech.Edu (Usenet netnews)
Newsgroups: sci.space.shuttle
Subject: Re: Launching shuttles soon
Message-ID: <1135@cit-vax.Caltech.Edu>
Date: Fri, 7-Nov-86 20:37:19 EST
Article-I.D.: cit-vax.1135
Posted: Fri Nov  7 20:37:19 1986
Date-Received: Sat, 8-Nov-86 18:17:17 EST
References: <7254@utzoo.UUCP> <346@xios.UUCP> <7275@utzoo.UUCP>
Reply-To: jon@cit-vax.UUCP (Jon Leech)
Organization: California Institute of Technology
Lines: 52

Organization : California Institute of Technology
Keywords: 
From: jon@oddhack.Caltech.Edu (Jon Leech)
Path: oddhack!jon

In article <207@cartan.Berkeley.EDU> desj@brahms (David desJardins) writes:
>In article <1132@cit-vax.Caltech.Edu> jon@cit-vax.UUCP (Jon Leech) writes:
>>    The only qualified people (the current members of the Astronaut Corps)
>>say they will be happy to fly it - as soon as the SRBs are understood,
>>fixed, and tested (at least, this is what Sally Ride said in a talk she
>>gave at Caltech last night).
>
>   I find this very hard to believe.  Certainly there was no problem with
>finding people to fly on the first shuttle flight, with a *much* greater
>risk than the 26th -- why would they suddenly not want to fly?

    I find it very easy to believe. The first flights of the shuttle
were flown by experienced test pilots who knew and accepted high risks.
The Mission Specialists and Payload Specialists are there to do a different
job, one which should not require undue risk of life. Without these people,
perhaps shuttles can be flown, but they won't be doing nearly as much.

>
>   From what I read in the media (admittedly a very poor source of such
>information) Sally Ride in particular is the most outspoken and insistent
>of the astronauts on the safety issue.  I wouldn't take her views as
>representative without further evidence.

    If so, perhaps it is because her membership on the Rogers Commission
gave her a better understanding of the many flaws in NASA and the shuttle
program. Her views are certainly representative of Sally Ride, at least.

>
>   Finally, if the astronauts we have aren't willing to fly, then we
>should be training some who are (whether or not shuttle flights are to
>be resumed).
>
>   -- David desJardins

    This is ridiculous. We certainly don't need astronauts if the
shuttle is not going to fly again. Since it is, we need the current
astronauts, who have the most experience and familiarity with the system.
Offering their - or any - lives to a system with at least one demonstrated 
fatal failure mode is very generous for people who are NOT that familiar 
and who won't fly themselves.

    Waiting until 1988 for another shuttle flight is unpleasant,
but we'll be waiting a hell of a lot longer if we start flying them
again and lose another one. 
    -- Jon Leech (jon@csvax.caltech.edu || ...seismo!cit-vax!jon)
    Caltech Computer Science Graphics Group
    __@/