The Stafford-Covey Return to Flight Task Group will issue
an interim report Tuesday, Jan. 20. The group is making an
independent assessment of NASA’s implementation of the Columbia
Accident Investigation Board Space Shuttle return to flight
recommendations.

The Task Group’s 78-page document will be publicly available at
3 p.m. EST at:

http://returntoflight.org

Co-Chairman Richard Covey will be available to answer questions
from the news media at 2:30 p.m. EST, Wednesday, Jan. 21 at the
Task Group office at 1740 NASA Parkway, Suite 101, Houston. A
telephone bridge will be provided for media unable to attend in
person. Interested media should call Shannon Bach at: 281/792- 7523 no later than 11 a.m. EST. Jan. 21.

The 28-member task group is co-chaired by Covey, a former Space
Shuttle Commander and retired Air Force Lieutenant General and
former Apollo Mission Commander Thomas Stafford. The Task Group
will continue to report results to NASA at appropriate
intervals and will provide a final report to the agency
approximately one month before the Space Shuttle’s return to
flight.