300 HISTORY OF Mil COMMITTE1 ON SCIENC V. AND TECHNOLOGY 



It appears to mc that NASA and the major Shuttle contractors have responded 

 very well to budget austerity and are still within cost and schedule on this very 

 challenging program NASA has had "to do more with less" and will suffer the loss 

 <> an additional 5CX) civil servants (next year) * * *. I should remind my colleagues 

 also there is no more room tor stretching out the Shuttle and meeting cost and schedule 

 commitments. 



THF. AIR FORCE AND THE SHUTTLE 



liver since the designation of Vandenberg Air Force Base as a 

 western Shuttle launch and recovery site, the Air Force participated 

 with NASA in the development of the Shuttle program. Hearings 

 by the subcommittee in 1977, chaired by freshman Representative 

 Albert Gore, Jr. (Democrat of Tennessee) explored the nature of the 

 Air Force activities. As budget difficulties forced the scaling down of 

 the Space Tug, originally planned to boost Shuttle payloads from 

 Earth orbit into geosynchronous orbit or deep space, the Air Force 

 proceeded with development of an "inertial/upper stage" (non- 

 recoverable). 



At the same time, private industry was developing spin stabilized 

 upper stages with the use of Atlas Centaur and Delta expendable 

 launch vehicles. In his testimony before the committee on January 26, 

 1978, Lt. Gen. Thomas F. Stafford, Commander of the Air Force Flight 

 Test Center and former Gemini and Apollo astronaut, praised the 

 cooperative relationship between NASA and the Air Force on the 

 development of the Shuttle: 



I |ust cannot agree with the critics that \ T ASA and the Air Force are not getting 

 along well, since I have been in it deeply for 13 vears. 



THE FIFTH SPACE SHUTTLE ORBITER 



In 1978, members of the committee were horrified to find out that 

 NASA's budget had been clipped again, to cut off funds for a proposed 

 fifth Space Shuttle orbiter. Representative Jim Lloyd (Democrat of 

 California) was the first to raise the flag on behalf of the fifth orbiter 

 in this question to General Stafford: 



I notice that we have cut out one of the Space Shuttles in this year's budget. 

 Within the realm of practicality, from your own point or view and wearing the 

 uniform that you arc, could you comment on that 5 Is that the right thing to do or 

 should we go forward a little stronger? 



General Stafford went as far as he could and still remain supportive 

 of the President's budget: 



Looking at the Department of Defense's requirements for satellite payloads, 

 and what NASA has before it, it would be a very tight schedule, particularly if there 

 is any delav. But as long as the production line is open to procure the fifth one at 

 this time, I certainh go along with it. 



