STS-27R was the 27th NASA Space Shuttle mission, and the third flight of Space Shuttle "Atlantis". Launching on 2 December 1988 on a four-day mission, it was the second shuttle flight after the Space Shuttle "Challenger" disaster of January 1986. STS-27R carried a classified payload for the U.S. Department of Defense, ultimately determined to be a Lacrosse surveillance satellite. The vessel's heat shielding was substantially damaged during lift-off, impacting the right wing, and crew members thought that they would die during reentry. This was a situation that was similar to the one that would prove fatal 15 years later on STS-107. Compared to the damage that "Columbia" sustained on STS-107, "Atlantis" experienced more extensive damage. However, this was over less-critical areas and the missing tile was over an antenna which gave extra protection to the spacecraft structure (and not part of a wing as cited initially). The mission landed successfully, although intense heat damage needed to be repaired.