WEBVTT

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Hi, I'm Steve Siceloff, a Public Affairs writer here at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

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I recently had the chance to fly with STS-135 Commander Chris Ferguson,  as he made one of his last

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practice landings in a Shuttle Training Aircraft, what we call an STA.

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It's a Gulfsteam II business jet that NASA modified to fly like a space shuttle making its approach to landing.

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That means it will tilt its nose down and soar toward the runway on a glide path seven times steeper than an airliner.

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Basically, it's the ultimate rollercoaster ride, no rails attached.

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The STA was waiting for us at the Shuttle Landing Facility. Fergie's made 1,400 dives at the runway in an STA.

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He gets inside first wearing his launch and entry suit,

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affectionately called the pumpkin suit he'll wear during a real landing.

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We fly to 28,000 feet above the three-mile-long Shuttle Landing Facility.

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There are a few clouds higher than us, but nothing below except air and the lighted outlines of

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Florida's space coast, the Vehicle Assembly Building rising majestically.

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It took us nine minutes to get up here. It's only going to take a minute to get down.

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The dive begins basically as soon as the instructor pilot puts the engines in reverse.

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This is when you feel gravity loosen its hold, but not for long.

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Fergie uses controls just like the shuttle's. He steers it along an invisible circle known as the HAC,

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the heading alignment cone, then continues on a straight path to the runway.

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We're riding in the passenger part of the aircraft, behind the pilots and flight engineer.

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We feel ourselves slide forward and then gravity really grabs us as the plane falls.

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Fergie pulls up on the stick and everything is set for landing approach.

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Lights at the end of the runway pass safely beneath the STA and Fergie gets his approach.

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The engines reset for normal flight and we head back up into the sky for another nine practice runs.

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Fergie will make this same approach in 
Atlantis as he concludes the STS-135 
mission, the last of the shuttle era.

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Thanks for joining us, I'm Steve Siceloff.

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