'Off we go...(hic)...into the wild blue yonderrrrr'

[Para_Frog 1]

That's just funny/tragic/stupid guuuud stuff.

Panel Finds Astronauts Flew While Intoxicated

Jul 26, 2007
By Frank Morring, Jr./Aviation Week & Space Technology

A panel reviewing astronaut health issues in the wake of the Lisa Nowak arrest has found that on at least two occasions astronauts were allowed to fly after flight surgeons and other astronauts warned they were so intoxicated that they posed a flight-safety risk.

The panel, also reported "heavy use of alcohol" by astronauts before launch, within the standard 12-hour "bottle to throttle" rule applied to NASA flight crew members.

A NASA spokesman declined comment on the findings, which were obtained by Aviation Week & Space Technology. The spokesman said a press conference has tentatively been scheduled for Friday afternoon on the issue. At the direction of Administrator Michael Griffin, NASA Chief Medical Officer Dr. Richard S. Williams set up the panel to review astronaut medical and psychological screening after Nowak was arrested in Orlando, Fla., Feb. 5 on charges of attempted murder and attempted kidnapping for allegedly stalking and threatening a woman who was dating another astronaut. The attempted murder charge was subsequently dropped.

The panel is composed of military and civilian government physicians, psychologists, lawyers, safety experts and astronauts under the chairmanship of U.S. Air Force Col. Richard Bachmann, dean of the Air Force School of Aerospace Medicine. Panel members visited Johnson Space Center in April to gather information from flight surgeons and the astronaut office on astronaut health screening. A panel member said Wednesday the report was still in draft form, and probably would be released in August. Separately, Griffin ordered JSC Director Mike Coats to review intake and on-going psychological screening for astronaut candidates and astronauts, and to recommend changes if necessary.

Griffin also directed Coats, himself a former astronaut, to "determine whether there were any areas of concern - any leading indicators we might have picked up on, based on Lisa Nowak's dealings with other astronauts or NASA employees," in the words of Deputy Administrator Shana Dale.

The Bachmann panel report apparently does not deal directly with Nowak or mention any other astronaut by name. Coats' findings also will be part of the press conference on Friday, according to the agency spokesman.

- Harvey, BASE 1232
TAN-I, IAD-I, S&TA

BLiNC Magazine Team Member

[Zipp0 1]

They probably got all wasted and gang banged Lisa in 0 g.

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Chuck Norris doesn't do push-ups, he pushes the Earth down.

[Darius11 12]

Quote

They probably got all wasted and gang banged Lisa in 0 g.

hmmmmmmmm zero G gang bang trying to see how it would work.
I always wanted to give someone a facial from 50 feet away.

I'd rather be hated for who I am, than loved for who I am not." - Kurt Cobain

[Zipp0 1]

Quote

Quote

They probably got all wasted and gang banged Lisa in 0 g.

hmmmmmmmm zero G gang bang trying to see how it would work.
I always wanted to give someone a facial from 50 feet away.

You can do it on Earth if you have a balcony.

--------------------------
Chuck Norris doesn't do push-ups, he pushes the Earth down.

[Darius11 12]

Damn wind i missed oh well try again, and again, and.................

I'd rather be hated for who I am, than loved for who I am not." - Kurt Cobain

[juanesky 0]

and then you would have sticky controls, and instruments shorting...and probably come crashing down...

"According to some of the conservatives here, it sounds like it's fine to beat your wide - as long as she had it coming." -Billvon

[freethefly 6]

Quote

Damn wind i missed oh well try again, and again, and.................

Try strafing your intended victim

"...And once you're gone, you can't come back
When you're out of the blue and into the black."
Neil Young

[squarecanopy 0]

Many airborne types I have known liked to "drink and drive". I grew up around pilots (including my father, God rest his soul) who drank until 2 am and took off at 6 am day after day.

As far as these astronauts are concerned, I guess the stress of having the one in a gozillion chance to strap 2 million pounds of thrust to their ass and take off on an adventure that the rest of us can only dream about is more than some of them can handle. They are human, after all.

Just burning a hole in the sky.....

[Guest]

Bah.

This is just a witch hunt.

mh
.

"The mouse does not know life until it is in the mouth of the cat."

[Shotgun 1]

I don't find this to be surprising. We live in a very pro-alcohol culture (despite all the alcohol-related laws that we have).

[tbrown 26]

NASA's got enough problems without having to scrub a mission because one of the crew is trashed. No way would they own up to something like that. Besides, launch time is critical to a lot of these missions if they're to get where they're going on schedule (rendezvous with the Space Station, etc, etc) and if they can't go on time it might be WEEKS before they go again and a lot of overtime pay on the ground is accruing for all those techies who make these things go.

The one that I find especially amusing is that one of the astronauts was flying on a Russian Soyuz launch, which must've been since the Columbia disaster, as Soyuz was the only way to get Americans into space while the Shuttle was grounded. The NASA mouthpiece admitted that, "drinking a lot of toasts is quite common in the Russian space program, even several hours before launch time".

So in other words kiddies, the Russkies are launching shitfaced on a pretty regular basis. I'm starting to think they're the ones having more fun up there.

Disclaimer: I'm a little shitfaced myself, anyone wanna launch ME into space ? I'm ready baby !

Your humble servant.....Professor Gravity !