Expand / Flight Director James M. (Milt) Heflin, at Mission Control throughout the trip of STS-26 at 1988.
The telephone call in the”Mountain” into Mission Control at Houston arrived at just about the worst possible moment. This was the wee hours of Thanksgiving early in 1991. In space, the team members on board shuttle Atlantis were still sleeping. All the sudden, Lead Flight Director Milt Heflin confronted a catastrophe.
The flight dynamics officer at Mission Control advised Heflin the Cheyenne Mountain Air Force Station, that monitored orbital visitors, was called to warn a twisted Turkish satellite possess a possible mix with the shuttle in just 15 minutes. Furthermore, this possible debris attack was due to happen at the center of a communications blackout together with all the team, since the spacecraft passed on the southern tip of Africa.
There was not any method for Heflin’s engineers to compute an avoidance move, wake up the team, and speak together until the blackout period started. Heflin was livid–{} the Air Force not granted more warning regarding a possible collision? Normally, they supplied roughly 24 hours’ notice. From God, if this satellite strike Atlantis{} might very well reduce the astronauts as they slept. The team of STS-44 could never wake up.
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