STS-51-J

Karol J. Bobko

• Birthday: 12/23/1937
• Role: Commander
• Nationality: American
• First Flight: 04/04/1983
• Last Flight: 10/03/1985

Karol Joseph “Bo” Bobko is an American aerospace engineer, retired U.S. Air Force officer, test pilot, and a former USAF and NASA astronaut.

Ronald J. Grabe

• Birthday: 06/13/1945
• Role: Pilot
• Nationality: American
• First Flight: 10/03/1985
• Last Flight: 06/21/1993

Ronald John Grabe is a former NASA astronaut.

He has earned the Air Force Distinguished Flying Cross, the Air Medal with 7 Oak Leaf Clusters, the Air Force Meritorious Service Medal, the Liethen-Tittle Award (for Outstanding Student at the USAF Test Pilot School), the Royal Air Force Cross, the NASA Exceptional Service Medal, and NASA Space Flight Medals.

William A. Pailes

• Birthday: 06/26/1952
• Role: Payload Specialist
• Nationality: American
• First Flight: 10/03/1985
• Last Flight: 10/03/1985

William Arthur Pailes (Colonel, USAF) (born June 26, 1952) was a USAF astronaut in the Manned Spaceflight Engineer Program during the mid-1980s. He served as a Payload Specialist on STS-51-J Atlantis (October 3–7, 1985).

Robert L. Stewart

• Birthday: 05/10/1942
• Role: Mission Specialist
• Nationality: American
• First Flight: 02/03/1984
• Last Flight: 10/03/1985

Robert Lee Stewart is a retired brigadier general of the United States Army and a former NASA astronaut.

David Hilmers

• Birthday: 01/28/1950
• Role: Mission Specialist
• Nationality: American
• First Flight: 10/03/1985
• Last Flight: 01/22/1992

David Carl Hilmers is a former NASA astronaut. Hilmers was selected a NASA astronaut in July 1980, and completed the initial training period in August 1981. A veteran of four space flights, he has logged over 493 hours in space.

STS-51-J

• Type: Government/Top Secret
• Orbit: Low Earth Orbit
• Launch Cost: $450,000,000

STS-51-J was the twenty-first space shuttle mission and the maiden flight of the Space Shuttle Atlantis. It was the second mission dedicated to deploying a Department of Defence payload. It was a classified mission however we do know that it deployed two 10 satellites.

Launch Complex 39A

Kennedy Space Center, FL, USA

Launch Complex 39A has witnessed the launch of 174 rockets, including 173 orbital launch attempts, while Kennedy Space Center, FL, USA, has been the site for 232 rocket launches.

National Aeronautics and Space Administration Space Shuttle

The Space Shuttle is a retired, partially reusable low Earth orbital spacecraft system operated from 1981 to 2011 by the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) as part of the Space Shuttle program. Its official program name was Space Transportation System (STS). Five complete Space Shuttle orbiter vehicles were built and flown on a total of 135 missions from 1981 to 2011.