STS-61-C STS-61-C STS-61-C was the twenty-fourth mission of NASA's Space Shuttle program, and the seventh mission of Space Shuttle "Columbia". It was the first time that "Columbia", the first space-rated Space Shuttle orbiter to be constructed, had flown since STS-9. The mission launched from Florida's Kennedy Space Center on 12 January 1986, and landed six days later on 18 January. STS-61-C's seven-person crew included the second African-American shuttle pilot, future NASA Administrator Charles Bolden, the first Costa Rican-born astronaut, Franklin Chang-Diaz, and the second sitting politician to fly in space, Representative Bill Nelson (D-FL). It was the last shuttle mission before
Space Shuttle retirement Space Shuttle retirement The retirement of NASA's Space Shuttle fleet took place from March to July 2011. "Discovery" was the first of the three active space shuttles to be retired, completing its final mission on March 9, 2011; "Endeavour" did so on June 1. The final shuttle mission was completed with the landing of "Atlantis" on July 21, 2011, closing the 30-year Space Shuttle program. The Shuttle was presented to the public in 1972 as a "space truck" which would, among other things, be used to build a United States space station in low earth orbit in the early 1990s