NASA Revisits Space Shuttle Close Calls

CAPE CANAVERAL - A rocket fuel fire during atmospheric re-entry that ended in explosions on the Edwards Air Force Base runway in 1983.

A launch pad fire with six astronauts aboard a fully fueled shuttle in 1984.

A brake failure and blown tire during a 1985 landing with a U.S. Senator aboard.

An orbital debris strike in 1992 that caused the type of wing damage that doomed Columbia and seven astronauts in 2003.

Amid the final push to return NASA's shuttle fleet to service, senior managers at Johnson Space Center in Houston are taking time to review the harrowing details of a dozen past shuttle missions that nearly ended in disaster.

"The idea is to just increase awareness and have everybody on their toes," said Bob Holkan, president of MTS Global Inc., a Houston-based management and technical services company that has been researching and
documenting the close calls.

"You know, there is not a lot of difference between a close call and an accident."

The look-back is well warranted. Seven astronauts are preparing to board Discovery on July 13 for a test flight to the International Space Station, and near-catastrophic problems have cropped up at least one in 10 shuttle missions to date.

Shuttle managers decided in January to develop a "close call awareness" program "as a way to provide increased, program-wide focus on attention to detail."

Deputy shuttle program manager Wayne Hale came up with the idea at a risk conference in California in 2004. Jim Lovell, commander of the Apollo 13 mission, recounted how a chain of seemingly minor events over the course of four or five years led to the fuel tank explosion that crippled the spaceship and prompted a now-legendary effort to get the crew home safe.

"I was amazed at the number of NASA people in that room that had never heard that part of the story. It was news to them. There is history here that is not getting to the right people," Hale said.

A note to shuttle program workers was issued to solicit suggested cases, and 12 were selected.

MTS Global was hired in February to research the cases and develop two products: PowerPoint presentations for use at JSC senior staff meetings and associated "white papers" that provide further detail.

Former astronaut Steve Hawley, who now heads a JSC science directorate, briefed senior staff on the 1984 launch pad fire.

With Discovery perched on launch pad 39A for its first flight, the main engines ignited and then shut down four seconds before liftoff when a fuel valve failed.

Explosive liquid hydrogen leaked and ignited, burning for at least 12 minutes as six astronauts scurried from shuttle.

A water spray system on the pad extinguished the fire, but managers never ordered the astronauts, including Hawley, to evacuate gantry. They lacked confidence in the metal baskets that would whisk astronauts down a 1,200-foot cable to the ground.

Published under license from FLORIDA TODAY. Copyright ? 2005 FLORIDA TODAY. No portion of this material may be reproduced in any way without the written consent of FLORIDA TODAY.

         Fixing NASA: Complete Coverage of Space Shuttle Return to Flight