Dick Scobee | |
|---|---|
 Scobee in 1984 | |
| Born | Francis Richard Scobee (1939-05-19)May 19, 1939 Cle Elum, Washington, U.S. |
| Died | January 28, 1986(1986-01-28) (aged 46) North Atlantic Ocean |
| Cause of death | Space ShuttleChallenger disaster |
| Resting place | Arlington National Cemetery |
| Education | University of Arizona (BS) |
| Awards | |
| Space career | |
| NASA astronaut | |
| Rank | Lieutenant colonel,USAF |
Time in space | 6d 23h 40m |
| Selection | NASA Group 8 (1978) |
| Missions | |
Mission insignia |   |
Francis Richard "Dick" Scobee (May 19, 1939 – January 28, 1986) was an Americanpilot,engineer, andastronaut. He waskilled while commanding theSpace ShuttleChallenger in 1986, which suffered catastrophicbooster failure during launch of theSTS-51-L mission.[1]
Scobee held aBachelor of Science degree inAerospace Engineering, graduating from theUniversity of Arizona in 1965. He was areciprocating enginemechanic for the United States Air Force and served as acombataviator in theVietnam War.
Selected forNASA Astronaut Corps in January 1978, Scobee completed his training in August 1979. While awaiting his firstorbital spaceflight mission, Scobee served as aninstructor pilot for the Shuttle's747 carrier aircraft. In April 1984, he pilotedChallenger missionSTS-41-C, which successfully deployed onesatellite and repaired another.
Scobee was born May 19, 1939, inCle Elum, Washington, to Francis William Scobee and Edlynn (Miller) Scobee. He attended North Auburn Elementary School (Later named Dick Scobee Elementary after him), Cascade Jr. High School, andAuburn Senior High School, from which he graduated in 1957.[2]
Scobee enlisted in theUnited States Air Force in 1957, where he served as areciprocating enginemechanic atKelly Air Force Base inSan Antonio,Texas. While off duty, Scobee attendedSan Antonio College, and eventually received aBachelor of Science degree inAerospace Engineering from theUniversity of Arizona in 1965. He was a member ofTau Beta Pi.
In 1965, Scobee was awarded anofficer's commission. Afterward, he attended flight school and earned hispilot wings in 1966, serving as acombataviator in theVietnam War. Scobee was awarded theDistinguished Flying Cross, theAir Medal, and other decorations.
After his tour of duty, Scobee attended theUSAF Aerospace Research Pilot School (Class 71B) atEdwards Air Force Base, 100 miles north ofLos Angeles,California. Upon graduation in 1972, he became an Air Forcetest pilot, logging thousands of hours of flight time in dozens ofaircraft, including theBoeing 747, the experimentalX-24Blifting body, theF-111 Aardvark, and the giganticC-5 Galaxy.[1]
Scobee was assigned commander for the ill-fatedSTS-51-L mission, after having previously flownChallenger inSTS-41-C as a pilot. The mission, designed to deploy a satellite to study the approachingHalley's Comet and to inaugurate theTeacher in Space Project, was delayed numerous times due to bad weather and technical glitches. When the mission finally did lift off thepad, a solid rocket boosterO-ring seal failuredestroyed the shuttle 73 seconds into the flight, killing Scobee and the other six crew members; the disaster, viewed live on national television, prompted several days of national mourning, as well as a major shakeup at NASA. He died alieutenant colonel. At T+68 into the mission, the CAPCOMRichard Covey informed the crew that they were "go at throttle up", and Scobee confirmed the call—his last recorded words were his response, "Roger, go at throttle up." The shuttle broke up at an altitude of 48,000 feet (14.6 km).[3]
Some experts, including one of NASA's lead investigators,Robert Overmyer, who was closest to Scobee, believed most if not all of the crew were alive and possibly conscious during the entire descent until impact with the ocean. After the investigation, Overmyer stated, "I not only flew with Dick Scobee, we owned a plane together, and I know Scob did everything he could to save his crew. Scob fought for any and every edge to survive. He flew that ship without wings all the way down."[4]
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Scobee married Virginia June Kent (now June Scobee Rodgers; born November 30, 1942), with whom he had two children: Kathie R. Scobee Fulgham and Lieutenant GeneralRichard W. Scobee. Dick Scobee is buried atArlington National Cemetery. June remarried in 1989 to retired Army LTGDon Rodgers. Richard graduated from theU.S. Air Force Academy, has flownF-16s for theUSAF, and has commanded the506th Air Expeditionary Group,944th Fighter Wing, the301st Fighter Wing, the10th Air Force andU.S. Air Force Reserve Command.[5] He led the military flyover during the pregame ofSuper Bowl XXX, which was played on the 10th anniversary of the disaster in 1996.[6]
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On July 9, 1994, the San Antonio College Planetarium was rededicated The Scobee Planetarium. In 2004, Scobee wasposthumously awarded theCongressional Space Medal of Honor and was inducted into theAstronaut Hall of Fame. After theChallenger disaster, a number of schools, streets, and municipal facilities in the U.S. were renamed in his honor. North Auburn Elementary School in Auburn, WA was renamed Dick Scobee Elementary, andAuburn Municipal Airport became Dick Scobee Field.[7] Dick Scobee Memorial Airfield is a radio-controlled and model aircraft facility located at George Bush Park in western Harris County, Texas.
Scobee Road inMyrtle Beach, South Carolina,[8] along withRonald McNair Boulevard andChrista McAuliffe Street, commemorate Scobee and his fellowChallenger crew members. InHouston, Texas's George Bush Park, there is a R/C (Remote Controlled) Flying Field named in Scobee’s honor.[9] He was portrayed byBarry Bostwick in the 1990 TV filmChallenger. Scobee also made an appearance in the 1985IMAX documentaryThe Dream is Alive, shot during the STS-41C mission.[10] In April 1986, Dick Scobee Elementary School in theAuburn School District was dedicated in a ceremony attended by his spouse, June.[11] TheCygnus NG-21 spacecraft was namedS.S. Francis R. "Dick" Scobee in his memory.[12]
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NASA Astronaut Group 8, "TFNG (Thirty-Five New Guys)", 1978  | |||||||
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NASA Astronaut Group 7 ← NASA Astronaut Group 8 →NASA Astronaut Group 9 | |||||||
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