WIKIARCHIVES.SPACE

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - Astronauts John Young, commander, and Robert Crippen, pilot, are assisted by members of the closeout crew as they enter the cockpit of Columbia for the maiden flight of the Space Shuttle on April 12. Fully suited, they entered through the clean room at Launch Pad 39A. Launch followed at a few seconds past 7 a.m., beginning an orbital mission scheduled to last for 54 hours, ending with an unpowered landing at Edwards Air Force Base in California. The STS-1 mission, known as a shuttle systems test flight, will seek to demonstrate safe launch into orbit and safe return of the orbiter and crew and verify the combined performance of the entire shuttle vehicle -- orbiter, solid rocket boosters and external tank.