Astronauts reunite to remember final Shuttle mission 10 years later

BREVARD COUNTY, Fla. — On July 8, 2011, Atlantis launched from Kennedy Space Center on the final mission for NASA’s shuttle program.

Thursday, nearly the entire crew reunited at the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex to mark the 10th anniversary of that final shuttle flight.

Mission specialist Sandy Magnus said the mission will always be special.

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“Atlantis was my very first mission and my last mission. For that reason it sort of has a special place in my heart for that reason,” Magnus said.

Former NASA and current Boeing astronaut Chris Ferguson, who commanded the last flight of Atlantis, has played a critical role in NASA’s commercial crew program.

“When I had the opportunity to join Boeing, and not only stay in human spaceflight but be a part of the design of one, it was just wonderful,” Ferguson said.

Ferguson has played a critical role in the development of Boeing’s CST-100 Starliner spacecraft, which is scheduled to make its second uncrewed flight test to the International Space Station later this month.

Missing from the reunion was NASA astronaut Doug Hurley.

Last year, Hurley and fellow astronaut Bob Behnken flew the first crewed flight to the International Space Station aboard a SpaceX Crew Dragon.

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In the 10 years since the last shuttle launch, the Kennedy Space Center and Cape Canaveral Space Force station have made the transitions to a multi-use spaceport with a growing number of commercial users.

Atlantis, which is on display at the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex, is one of three space-flown shuttles displayed in the United States.

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