Atlantis Astronauts Put Safety First in Launch Training

STS-117 commander Rick Sturckow, at the microphone, speaks to the media on Feb. 21, 2007. With him, from the left, are Mission Specialists James Reilly, Danny Olivas, Steven Swanson and Patrick Forrester, and Pilot Lee Archambault. CREDIT: NASA/Kim Shiflett.

CAPE CANAVERAL - The Atlantis astronauts will go through emergency training at Kennedy Space Center today as NASA prepares for a planned mid-March launch of an International Space Station assembly mission.

Riding an elevator up to the 195-foot-level of the launch complex 39A gantry, the astronauts will check out a tower escape system they would use in the event of an emergency on launch day.

The astronauts also will drive an armored personnel carrier they would use to rush to a nearby helipad if an injured crewmate needed to be flown to a hospital.

A two-day practice countdown also is on tap this week.

Shuttle skipper Rick Sturckow said his crew is ready for the traditional training exercises, which every shuttle crew takes part in before launch.

"We've got a pretty busy schedule," Sturckow said after the astronauts arrived at KSC on Wednesday. "Lots of good training."

Pilot Lee Archambault and mission specialists James Reilly, Steven Swanson, Patrick Forrester and Danny Olivas round out the crew.

The astronauts are scheduled to launch March 15 on a mission to deliver a 17.5-ton truss segment to the station. Three spacewalks are planned. Said Reilly: "We're looking forward to a fantastic flight."

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