RTF Task Force Findings Get Mixed Review By Media

3 safety goals for shuttle missed, Orlando Sentinel

“You can’t legislate that people should be smart,” NASA Administrator Michael Griffin said in an interview with the Orlando Sentinel on Monday. “We have spent a goodly sum of money, many millions of dollars, trying to figure out how to do this, and we’ve not yet been successful. It’s a very difficult technical problem.”

Panel: NASA Fails to Meet Safety Test, AP

“A panel overseeing NASA’s resumption of shuttle flights concluded Monday that the space agency has failed to meet the toughest safety recommendations put in place after the Columbia disaster.”

Panel Says NASA Still Falls Short on Safety Issues, NY Times

“… the findings are an embarrassment for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration after two years of work to correct the problems that led to the loss of the shuttle Columbia and its crew of seven.”

Safety panel: NASA failed to fix critical issues with shuttle, USA Today

“A safety panel ruled Monday that NASA has failed to take three steps critical to returning the space shuttle to orbit, despite the space agency’s assurances that it would do so. Nevertheless, panel members said they consider the shuttle safe enough to fly again.”

Panel Calls Shuttle Ready, Wavers on Safety Moves, Washington Post

“An independent panel of experts declined yesterday to fully endorse new safety measures for the space shuttle but said the orbiter is nevertheless “ready to fly” and praised NASA for its exhaustive efforts to overcome the critical flaws that caused the Columbia disaster.”