Space Shuttle Columbia and ended in disaster 73 seconds after launch. In the aftermath NASA's shuttle timetable was disrupted, and "Columbia" was not flown again until 1989 (on STS-28), after which it resumed normal service as part of the shuttle fleet. STS-93, launched on July 23, 1999, was the first U.S. space mission with a female commander, Lt. Col. Eileen Collins. This mission deployed the Chandra X-ray Observatory. "Columbia"'s final successful mission was STS-109, the fourth servicing mission for the Hubble Space Telescope. Its next mission, STS-107, culminated in the orbiter's loss when it disintegrated during reentry, killing all seven of its crew.
Space Shuttle Discovery alone. "Discovery" flew all three "return to flight" missions after the "Challenger" and "Columbia" disasters: STS-26 in 1988, STS-114 in 2005, and STS-121 in 2006. "Discovery" flew the ante-penultimate mission of the Space Shuttle program, STS-133, having launched on February 24, 2011. "Endeavour" flew STS-134 and "Atlantis" performed STS-135, NASA's last Space Shuttle mission. On February 24, 2011, Space Shuttle "Discovery" launched from Kennedy Space Center's Launch Complex 39-A to begin its final orbital flight. The Flow Director was responsible for the overall preparation of the shuttle for launch and processing it after landing, and remained permanently assigned to head