astronaut wings-why they are obsolete

[spacefire]

Well, the first astronauts were all pilots. getting their astronaut wings meant they were pilots who had flown in space. In any case still pilots!<br />Now we have people that are not pilots, or not even employed by a government agency, going in space. <br />The FAA grants pilot licenses, A&P ceriticates...things which show what one is QUALIFIED to do. A space tourist is not qualified to go in space, he just pays for a ride. He/she should not get the so called 'astronaut wings'.<br />In fact, astronaut wings should be reserved, IMO , for NASA or military people who pilot a vehicle in space, possibly for its crew members, but in a different format (like pilot wings, observer wings and so on in the services.)<br />Mike Melvill himself should not have gotten astronaut wings from the FAA. First of all, he was not rated by the FAA to fly in space. He didn't obtain a 'space pilot's license'There is no such rating yet. <br />Second, he was not a member of NASA or the military, which IMO are the only services who can grant wings to be recognized outside of the service as well-as opposed to airlines who put wings on their piltos and flight attendants too, but are recognized only internally.<br /> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p>http://asteroid-invasion.blogspot.com</p><p>http://www.solvengineer.com/asteroid-invasion.html </p><p> </p> </div>

 

[wvbraun]

Indeed.

 

[spacefire]

that's bs and you know it.<br /><br /><br />and why am I wrong?<br />I just love it when some-brainless-bodyb says: you';re wrong and then does not back his/her statements <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p>http://asteroid-invasion.blogspot.com</p><p>http://www.solvengineer.com/asteroid-invasion.html </p><p> </p> </div>

 

[lunatic133]

First of all --<br /><br />Mission specialists, payload specialists, and others who have flown on the space shuttle with NASA HAVE earned their astronaut wings, through the blood, sweat, and tears of being the best and the brightest, and being good enough to make it through the ruthless ASCAN process and then surviving the rigorous training that follows. Just because they do not fly the space shuttle doesn't mean they didn't earn it just the same as everyone else.<br /><br />Second, Mike Mellvill by your definition should indeed be considered an astronaut, because he DID, in fact, pilot a vehicle into space. You may argue that it was merely suborbital, but if Alan Shepard was considered an astronaut after his first mission, then so should Mellville. In some respects, he deserves to be considered an astronaut MORE than many NASA astronauts who have not flown yet (not to say that they don't deserve to be astronauts, they do, they just haven't been in space, so therefore by your definition are less of astronauts than Mike Mellville.)<br /><br />As for tourists being named astronauts, I don't think it has ever been said if that is actually going to happen yet. I for one actually think that it IS wrong to give tourists astronaut wings because they did not earn it the same way NASA astronauts and pilots like Mellville did. Maybe give them cheap plastic commemorative wings like they give little kids on airplanes, a sort of "I went to the edge of space and all I got was this lousy T-shirt" memorobelia, but I don't think that space tourists should be official astronauts. Those who fly the tourists into space, however, do. <br /><br /> I do not see Mellvill being less of an astronaut than, say, Steve Robinson, just because he flies for private industry, and I don't see Robinson being less of an astronaut than Eileen Collins just because he's a mission specialist.<br /><br />There's my two cents on the matter.

 

[SpaceKiwi]

Hey, big picture here guys! They went to SPACE!!!!! They get/got a one in six billion experience that no-one can truely understand unless they have experienced themselves. I'm sure what kind of commemorative trinket they got/get to acknowledge the fact is the very LEAST of their worries! <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p><em><font size="2" color="#ff0000">Who is this superhero?  Henry, the mild-mannered janitor ... could be!</font></em></p><p><em><font size="2">-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------</font></em></p><p><font size="5">Bring Back The Black!</font></p> </div>

 

[rocketwatcher2001]

The FAA has already decided who is and who isn't an Astronaut.<br /><br /><i>Under a new regulatory regime, paying passengers, deemed “space flight participants,” will now be able to fly into space on board commercial space vehicles after such passengers are informed of and assume the significant risks of the venture. The new legislation sets an ambitious schedule for issuing rules on commercial human space flight. The FAA’s staff are already working on rules for experimental permits called for by the new law and for rules on medical and training requirements for crew and space flight participants.</i><br /><br />In short: <br /><br />Crew= "Astronaut"<br /><br />Passenger= "space flight participant" <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> </div>