>>LAUREN VERNO: NOW DOWN TO LIFTOFF WE ARE NOW JUST 8 HOURS AND 32 MINUTES AWAY FROM A
SCHEDULED HISTORIC LAUNCH FROM
KENNEDY SPACE CENTER WEATHER
COULD BE AN ISSUE IF YOU LOOK
LIVE RIGHT NOW AT THE LAUNCH
PAD ON
THE RIGHT.
>>JENNIFER WAUGH: GOOD MORNING,
EVERYONE, THIS IS SOMETHING
THAT HASN’T HAPPENED IN ALMOST
A DECADE. BUT A NEW CHAPTER IN HISTORY MAY BE WRITTEN TODAY WITH THE FIRST CREWED LAUNCH
FROM US SOIL SINCE 2011.
>> AND TAKE THE PATIENT IS BUILDING WE’RE DOING MORE THAN KEEPING OUR FINGERS CROSSED WE
GET OUR CODE FOR A FEW
OVER HERE. STORMS WE KNOW COULD
FORCE NASA TO DELAY TODAY’S
LIVES THERE ARE A LOT OF THINGS
THAT
HAVE TO COME INTO PLAY HERE AND
WE’RE GOING TO RICHARD ON THE
LAUNCH FORECAST IN JUST A FEW
MINUTES, WE’RE LOOKING AT THE
SEAS TO THE FIRST NEWS 4 JAX
ANCHOR BRUCE HAMILTON IN THOSE
CLOUDY SKIES RIGHT NOW JOINS US
LIVE FROM THE SPACE COAST WITH
OUR LAUNCH AMERICA COVERAGE JOB
RUTH AFTER SPENDING
ALL DAY. I MEAN JUST TO BE HERE
TODAY ITS HISTORIC WHETHER OR
NOT THIS LAUNCH HAPPENS TODAY.
WE KNOW IT WILL HAPPEN AT SOME
POINT.
>>BRUCE HAMILTON: IT WILL
HAPPEN AT SOME POINT THEIR
CONTINGENCY PLANS TO FLY ON
SATURDAY AND SUNDAY, BUT THIS
IS FLORIDA AND AFTERNOON
SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS ARE
ALWAYS A POSSIBILITY. THIS TIME
OF YEAR. I
JUST CHECKED.
THE AFTERNOON FORECAST 90%
CHANCE OF SHOWERS AND
THUNDERSTORMS AND IT ALL
DEPENDS YOU KNOW WHERE THEY ARE
IN AND AROUND LAUNCH PAD 39 AND
THE AIR FORCE IS GOING TO
DELIVER ITS NEXT FORECAST ABOUT
1230 THIS AFTERNOON, WE’LL SEE
WHAT THEY HAD TO SAY THEY CAN
SCRUB THE LAUNCH WITH JUST 45
SECONDS LEFT ON
THE CLOCK. HISTORIC IN MANY
SENSES OF THE WORD TODAY FIRST
TIME THEY’RE GOING TO LAUNCH US
ASTRONAUTS ON US SOIL YOU’VE
HEARD IT. IN 9 YEARS SINCE THE
SHUTTLE WENT FLYING ATLANTIS.
9 YEARS AGO FIRST TIME PUBLIC
PRIVATE PARTNERSHIP, NASA SPACE
X FIRST TIME DURING A PANDEMIC
THE 2 ASTRONAUTS WHO ARE
ON BOARD. THEY’RE VERY FAMILIAR
WITH THE RISKS AND MAKE NO
DOUBT ABOUT IT THERE ARE RISKS
WITH THIS FLIGHT.
THESE 2 GUYS JOIN THE ASTRONAUT
CORPS AT THE SAME TIME SINCE
2000. THEY ARE. BUT HE’S HEARD
SOME INTERVIEWS WITH HIM.
THEY’VE GOT EACH OTHER’S BACKS
THE KIND OF READ EACH
OTHER’S MINDS. IN FACT UH BOB
BEHNKEN SAID WHEN IT COMES TO
DOUG HURLEY I CAN ASK HIM A
QUESTION AND HE KIND OF KNOWS
THE ANSWER BEFORE I EVEN ASK IF
THAT’S HOW
SYMBIOTIC THEIR RELATIONSHIP IS
THEY GO WAY BACK. THEY ARE
TRAINING PILOTS AND THIS IS A
TRAINING MISSION THEY CALL IT
DEMO 2 AND BASICALLY WHAT
THEY’RE DOING IS TRAINING FOR
THE FUTURE BECAUSE ULTIMATELY
THEY WANT TO USE THESE MISSIONS
TO GET TO THE MOON MARS AND
BEYOND SO LET’S FIND OUT MORE
ABOUT THESE ASTRONAUTS AND WHAT
THEY’RE ALL ABOUT.
>> BANK AND WAS AN EXPERIENCED
AIR FORCE TEST FLIGHT WHEN HE
WAS FIRST ELECTED BY NASA TO
JOIN THE ASTRONAUT CORPS IN
2000 THE THAT SPACE ON THE
SHUTTLE MISSION IN 2010 SPENT
700 HOURS IN SPACE WITH 37 OF
THOSE TAKEN UP BY SPACE WALK.
IN THE TIME SINCE BANK AND
BECAME
A DAD AND ON MAY 12 HE TWEETED
HE HAD TO GET SONS APPROVAL
BEFORE THIS LAUNCH AFTER YOU
KNOW HAVING A CHILD AND BEING A
FATHER THERE IS A DIFFERENT
LEVEL
OF PREPARATION.
>> BOTH TO SHARE THE MISSION
WITH MY SON WHICH IS SOMETHING
I’M SUPER EXCITED TO HAVE THE
OPPORTUNITY
TO DO OF COURSE, HE’S ONLY SEEN
A PICTURES AND VIDEO FROM
BEFORE HE WAS BORN FROM MY
PREVIOUS MISSIONS.
CERTAINLY THERE IS RISK
ASSOCIATED WITH A MISSION LIKE
THIS AS WE GO FORWARD.
BUT I DO WANT HIM TO KNOW THAT
A IT’S A MISSION THAT I FEEL
STRONGLY ABOUT IT’S A IT’S A
GOING FORWARD IN A WAY THAT I
THINK IT’S
IMPORTANT FOR FOR AS HUMANS,
BUT AS AMERICANS AS WELL AND
I WANT HIM TO BE PROUD OF HIS
AS WE GOT TO GO FORWARD WITH
THE MISSION.
>>BRUCE HAMILTON: HIS PARTNER
ON THIS MISSION IS DOUG HURLEY
A RETIRED MARINE WHO ALSO
JOINED THE ASTRONAUT CORPS IN
THE SAME YEAR 2000. A VETERAN
OF
2 SPACE MISSIONS. HE LAST FLEW
IN 2011 ON NASA’S FINAL SHUTTLE
MISSION. RATHER POETIC ONE OF
THE LAST US ASTRONAUTS TO
LAUNCH FROM US SOIL. AND NOW
ONE OF
THE FIRST.
>> IN 9 YEARS IT’S KIND OF ME
BECAUSE FOR ME
BECAUSE.
>> YOU KNOW IT HAS BEEN SUCH A
LONG ROAD AND IT’S KIND OF BEEN
A JOURNEY A PERSONAL JOURNEY
RIGHT ALONG WITH NASA’S JOURNEY
TO KIND OF
TRANSITION FROM.
>> YOU KNOW THAT THE SPACE
SHUTTLE ERA TO THIS NEXT ERA OF
OF OF SPACE FLIGHT FOR
NASA AND AND THE UNITED STATES
FOR THAT MATTER AND SO I JUST
YOU KNOW IT’S HARD TO BELIEVE
IN SOME WAYS YOU KNOW YOU YOU
WHEN SOMEBODY SAYS THAT YOU’RE
LIKE WELL THAT CAN’T POSSIBLY
BE ME BUT BUT IT LOOKS LIKE
IT’S GOING TO
BE SO. YOU KNOW WE JUST TRY TO
YOU KNOW TAKE IT ON BOARD JUST
LIKE ANYTHING ELSE AND YOU KNOW
PROBABLY DO A LOT MORE THINKING
ABOUT IT WHEN WE GET BACK THEN
THAN NOW I THINK YOU KNOW WE’RE
CERTAINLY
FOCUSED ON ON OUR YOU KNOW TO
TO.
♪
TO. ♪ MAKE THIS A VERY
SUCCESSFUL MISSION.
>> THIS IS THE FIRST TIME
BEHNKEN AND HURLEY FLEW
TOGETHER UNLIKE HIS
COUNTERPART, CURRENTLY SON HAD
TO SAY ABOUT THAT FLYING
INTO SPACE. IN FACT A SON GABE
IS
♪
IS ♪ OKAY BY HAVING DEBT SHARE THIS
DRAWING OF CREW DRAGON IN LATE
APRIL.
NAS HAS YET TO DECIDE HOW LONG
THE 2 WILL REMAIN ON BOARD THE
INTERNATIONAL
SPACE STATION THEY’LL PERFORM
SOME TESTS ON THE CREW DRAGON
AND DO SOME TESTS AS WELL AS
RESEARCH WITH THE ISS CREW.
WHEN THE DECISIONS MADE TO COME