Senate committee adds another Shuttle flight for 2011

BREVARD COUNTY, Fla. (WOFL, FOX 35) - A bipartisan Senate Committee approved a bill Wednesday that will add a third Space Shuttle flight in the summer of 2011.

The plan attracted unanimous bipartisan support, marking a rarity in the nation’s capitol. The White House, along with key members of both parties in Congress supported the bill which will now go to the full Senate.

The bill, which was co-authored by Florida Democratic Senator Bill Nelson who is also chairman of the Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation, lays out a new direction for NASA for the next three years. The legislation extends the Shuttle program for at least another year, and will keep much of the Kennedy Space Center workforce employed. It will also support a growth in the fields of science, aeronautics, and space technology and set goals to have full utilization of the International Space Station.

With the advance in heavy lift rocket development, NASA will resume human space flights in 2016, rather than 2025 as had been originally planned.

The legislation will bring Florida billions of dollars to fund the development of a new generation of big rockets that will carry future space ships and crews into orbit.

NASA will be directed to begin development immediately, rather then waiting until 2015.