First Woman To Command A Space Shuttle Mission To Be On Stage In Cleveland

Retired Air Force Colonel Eileen Collins, who in 1995 became the first female shuttle pilot and in 1997 was the first woman to command a space shuttle mission, will speak at the Republican National Convention on July 20th, according to the event's speaker roster.

SpaceNews reports that Collins was an outspoken critic of the Obama administration's cancellation of the Constellation moon landing program. She is on the schedule for July 20, the day before presumptive nominee Donald Trump is scheduled to speak.

Collins describes herself on LinkedIn as a professional speaker and aerospace consultant. She serves on several advisory panels. In February, she was among the witnesses to testify before the House Science Committee as it considered legislation to restructure NASA's management. The bill would have created a board of directors charged with choosing a NASA administrator who would be given a 10-year term.

During the hearing, Collins said that the cancellation of the Constellation program "shocked" her and several of her colleagues. "I believe program cancellation decisions that are made by bureaucracies behind closed doors, without input by the people, are divisive, damaging, cowardly and many times more expensive in the long run,” she said during the hearing.

(Official NASA photo)

FMI: http://convention.gop