[net.columbia] U.S. Senator to fly on shuttle

rjnoe@ihlts.UUCP (Roger Noe) (11/08/84)

U.S. Senator Jake Garn (R-Utah) has been chosen by NASA to fly on some
future space shuttle mission.  Garn, 52, a former Navy pilot and a
retired lieutenant colonel in the U.S. Air National Guard, has logged
more than 10,000 hours of flight time, more than any active astronaut
except Joe Engle.  Garn is chairman of a Senate subcommittee that handles
funding for NASA.  The senator is said to be in nearly perfect physical
condition.  Garn will act as the Senate's eyes on the shuttle flight
to see how the missions are conducted and how the money is spent.  He will
report back to the Senate following his flight.  Garn will be training with
NASA in Houston and Cape Canaveral.  He will undergo about the same training
as a payload specialist, which is about 100 hours of training over several
weeks.
--
Roger Noe			ihnp4!ihlts!rjnoe