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NASA FLIGHT DIRECTOR NORMAN KNIGHT (’90, PC) TAKES THE MANTLE OF MISSION CONTROL GREATS , WE HAVE A PROGENY A glimpse of Norman Knight (’90, PC) striding through ’s Mission Control hearkens to an era when the Beatles topped the charts and muscle cars ruled the roads. “He’s got a attop and wears a white button down shirt with a dark tie. He’s right out of the ’60s. He looks like ,” NASA and fellow Embry-Riddle alum Terry Virts (’97, WW) says, evoking imagery of the legendary ight director best known for his role in saving the crew of . “Kranz is the hero of ight directors. Norm is following in his footsteps.” BY LAURIE DAVIES

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FdERFA10_10-13_knight.indd 11 8/4/10 11:13:46 AM Knight draws no such likenesses, at least not intentionally. He holds the prestigious role of Deputy Chief, Flight is all in the Embry–Riddle family Director Office at Johnson Space Center, and helps manage the dynamic, high- orm Knight (’90, PC) is not the well after working up close and personal with stress, real-time environment known as only Embry-Riddle alumnus inti- them at KSC [] for so Mission Control. But at heart, he’s still mately involved with the Shuttle many years. There is nothing like them, and just a kid who grew up 7 miles from the program. I don’t think there will be anything else like Houston-based epicenter of human space Currently, two Embry-Riddle them for a very long time. As the program exploration. “I was always a visitor. I went , (’87, DB) comes to an end, I hope that everyone will to NASA’s Visitors’ Center all the time. Nand B. Alvin Drew (’95, WW), are prepar- take some time to celebrate the successes of I was in awe of this amazing agency.” ing for STS-133, the next-to-last Shuttle Today he’s at the center of it. mission. It will be their second trip to the International Space Station. ‘Like watching rolling thunder’ In their training, Stott and Drew are Growing up in Houston in the 1960s getting help from yet another alumnus, and ’70s, Knight devoured books on the Scott Wray (’09, PC), who works as an . The first televised Shuttle Extra Vehicular Activities (EVA) crew launch burned the beginnings of a dream instructor and flight controller for United into his young mind. “The smoke and fire Space Alliance at the NASA Johnson and how that was channeled to provide an Space Center in Houston. escape from Earth—that really fascinated “I absolutely love my job and have me,” he says. Embry-Riddle to thank for preparing me Constantly pondering the forces of lift for it,” Wray says. “I am currently training and drag, Knight spent hours at Ellington Embry-Riddle alumni Nicole Stott and Air Force Base. “The National Guard Alvin Drew, as well as Tim Kopra in Extra was flying F-4 Phantoms at the time. It was Vehicular Activity. Tim Kopra and Alvin like watching rolling thunder,” Knight says. Drew will perform spacewalks during their As a young man, he set out for Embry- mission and Nicole Stott will serve as their Riddle to become a fighter pilot, but 20/50 Inter Vehicular Activities officer.” vision redirected him to aeronautical engi- We asked Stott and Drew to take a neering. While he credits Embry-Riddle’s moment from their training to reflect on the wind tunnel, aerostructures and physics close of the Shuttle program and what it labs with forging a “bond between engi- means for human space travel in the future. neering principles and how things behave in real life,” Embry-Riddle’s greater con- Nicole Stott: I think the word “bitter- tribution to launching Knight’s career may sweet” is what you will commonly hear, Embry-Riddle alumni (clockwise from top), Scott Wray (’09, PC), have been in opening a path to NASA. and it certainly is for me. I feel like I got Nicole Stott (’87, DB) and B. Alvin Drew (’95, WW) have all played “NASA had high-speed aircraft and to know these magnificent vehicles so key roles in NASA’s . . NASA had it all,” Knight says. He applied for NASA’s Cooperative Education Program, a four-month internship program

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FdERFA10_10-13_knight.indd 12 8/2/10 5:59:06 PM Norman D. Knight During 20 years with NASA, Norman Knight (’90, BS Aeronautical Engineering, Prescott) has supported:

• A total of 40 NASA flights in • Six Space Shuttle missions a certified flight controller as Ascent Flight Director position • Four missions as Entry Flight • Over 1,500 hours of console Director operations as International • Two missions as Orbit Flight Space Station Flight Director Director

Knight has some of the broadest experience in the Flight Director office, having certifications for Shuttle Ascent/Entry, Shuttle Orbit and the International Space Station—and was the first Flight Director to achieve certification in all these positions.

at Dryden Flight Research Center. Dryden a factor in his decision, he avoided the was full. So Knight sought permission to go significant cost and the large number of Space Shuttle is all in the Embry–Riddle family where no Embry-Riddle student had gone employees who would have had to work before. “Embry-Riddle empowered me to well past the Christmas holiday to load the Space Shuttle program and the beauti- go build a relationship with Johnson Space Discovery onto a 747 to fly it from New ful vehicles themselves. Center, and I became one of the first group Mexico back to . “It was a hard first I also feel a real sadness and uncer- of Embry-Riddle co-op students at that day on that job,” Knight says. tainty right now, because I’m not totally NASA Center.” clear yet about the details of the new plan A Look Back—and Ahead for human following the Space Shuttle Experience Knight’s career low-point is shared by Shuttle. I do hold hope, though, that we as a In Knight’s first days at NASA, he pro- every other modern-day NASA astro- nation are not willing to give up the leading grammed displays for flight controllers naut, flight controller and engineer—the role we have in and will as they transitioned into a new, modern Columbia disaster that claimed a seven- continue to build and launch the vehicles . “It was amazing member crew in 2003. Knight had planned and the astronauts to destinations both in to see what happens from the inside out to watch Columbia’s over North and outside of low Earth orbit. The poten- as opposed to being a tourist from the Houston on Feb. 1 with his son from their tial for exploring outside our own relatively outside in,” he says. roof. Fog kept them inside. The phone close orbit is certainly exciting to me. With a confidence in his ability to rang 10 minutes later. isolate complicated machinery problems “I rushed into console to work with the B. Alvin Drew: The pending Space and find quick fixes on the fly, he rose in station crew to determine what happened Shuttle program retirement is poignant for NASA’s ranks. “He’s in a super elite group and how to deal with it,” Knight says, his me. It represents the last relic of a space of people,” Virts says. “The Space Shuttle tone turning somber. “They were friends.” exploration era that spanned from the early is an extremely complicated system, and Knight’s tone remains somber when ’50s to the mid-’70s, when anything was pos- he understands everything about it.” talks turn to the end of NASA’s Shuttle sible. Our aspirations were boundless, and During a 20-year tenure with NASA, program. He ponders the possibilities we weren’t afraid to stub our toes in pursuit Knight’s first flight as Shuttle Entry Flight of a manned visit to an asteroid, a robot of a great cause. We’re more constrained and Director in December 2006 still stands being sent to the moon and a possible risk-averse in our space-faring goals now. out. High cross-winds ruled out landing journey to Mars. “I’m hoping this agency I am excited for our next generation of Discovery at Edwards Air Force Base while provides a vision my children can believe astronauts and scientists because of clouds and showers at Kennedy Space in,” he says. the great, untapped opportunities that exist Center thrust the seldom-used White Sands In the meantime, at age 44, he’s still awe- for them. We have yet to re-examine some Space Harbor in New Mexico into real struck over the systems and machinery of of the very ambitious concepts from the consideration for its first Shuttle landing NASA’s soon-to-be-retired Space Shuttles. ’50s and ’60s (which could not get around since 1982. “The Shuttle is an engineering marvel. You the limits of their technology), in light of “In the end, I looked at how the have 4.5 million pounds of hardware sitting our current and future state of technology. weather patterns were trending and made on the pad with eight bolts—eight bolts— I really expect this next generation to head the call to send them to the Cape [Kennedy keeping it in place. You take this magnifi- Embry-Riddle alumni (clockwise from top), Scott Wray (’09, PC), Nicole Stott (’87, DB) and B. Alvin Drew (’95, WW) have all played back to the future, with Mars ships, flying Space Center]. If I was wrong, the conse- cent piece of machinery from 0 to 17,500 key roles in NASA’s Space Shuttle program. cars and jet packs. quences could range from vehicle damage miles per hour in 8.5 minutes. When you see to the life of the crew,” Knight says. all the hardware and all the teams required Knight got the crew down safely and, to make this a success, it’s truly a testament although he emphasizes it was never to the great things this nation can do.”

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