EDWARDS AIR FORCE BASE, Calif -- The Test Pilot School’s auditorium was dedicated in honor of Maj Francis R. “Dick” Scobee, mission commander of the Space Shuttle Challenger at the time of its destruction in a fatal explosion the previous January..
Francis Richard Scobee was an American pilot, engineer and astronaut. He was killed while he was commanding the Space Shuttle Challenger in 1986, which suffered catastrophic booster failure during launch of the STS-51-L mission. He held a Bachelor of Science degree in Aerospace Engineering. He was a reciprocating engine mechanic for the United States Air Force and served as a combat aviator in the Vietnam War. Selected for NASA Astronaut Corps in January 1978, Scobee completed his training in August 1979. While awaiting his first orbital spaceflight mission, he served as an instructor pilot for the Shuttle's 747 carrier aircraft. In April 1984, he piloted Challenger mission STS-41-C, which successfully deployed one satellite and repaired another.
STS-41-C was NASA's 11th Space Shuttle mission, and the fifth mission of Space Shuttle Challenger. The launch, which took place on April 6, 1984, marked the first direct ascent trajectory for a shuttle mission. During the mission, Challenger's crew captured and repaired the malfunctioning Solar Maximum Mission ("Solar Max") satellite, and deployed the Long Duration Exposure Facility (LDEF) experimental apparatus. STS-41-C was extended one day due to problems capturing the Solar Max satellite, and the landing on April 13 took place at Edwards Air Force Base, instead of at Kennedy Space Center as had been planned. The flight was originally numbered STS-13.