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Eileen Collins

Eileen Collins was the first female commander of a space shuttle mission.

Quick Facts

Eileen Collins was selected as a NASA astronaut in 1990. Collins has the distinction of being the first female pilot and the first female commander in shuttle history.

Eileen Collins was selected as a NASA astronaut in 1990. Collins has the distinction of being the first female pilot and the first female commander in shuttle history.

Collins flew on four shuttle missions: STS-63, STS-84, STS-93, and STS-114.

Collins flew on four shuttle missions: STS-63, STS-84, STS-93, and STS-114.

STS-114, the last mission Collins flew, was dubbed “Return to Flight” as the first shuttle mission to fly after the Columbia tragedy.

STS-114, the last mission Collins flew, was dubbed "Return to Flight" as the first shuttle mission to fly after the Columbia tragedy.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. – Official portrait of Eileen Collins, mission commander on STS-114.
NASA

STS-84 Pilot Eileen Marie Collins arrives in a T-38 jet at KSC’s Shuttle Landing Facility. Collins will make her second space flight on STS-84. Her initial flight was as the first woman Shuttle pilot on STS-63 in 1995. STS-84 will be the sixth docking of the Space Shuttle with the Russian Space Station Mir. During the docking, STS-84 Mission Specialist C. Michael Foale will transfer to the Russian space station to become a member of the Mir 23 crew, replacing U.S. astronaut Jerry M. Linenger, who will return to Earth on Atlantis. Foale is scheduled to remain on Mir about four months until his replacement arrives on STS-86 in September
NASA

With the assistance of a suit technician, STS-84 Pilot Eileen Marie Collins finishes donning her launch and entry suit in the Operations and Checkout Building in preparation for her second Space Shuttle flight. She was the first woman Shuttle pilot on STS-63 in 1995, which was the first approach and flyaround of the Russian Space Station Mir by the Space Shuttle. Collins and six other crew members will depart shortly for Launch Pad 39A, where the Space Shuttle Atlantis awaits liftoff during an approximate 7-minute launch window which opens at about 4:08 a.m. This will be the sixth docking of the Space Shuttle with the Mir. The exact liftoff time will be determined about 90 minutes prior to launch, based on the most current location of Mir
NASA

STS084-358-009 (15-24 May 1997) — Astronaut Eileen M. Collins, STS-84 pilot, handles what appears to be an oversized space toy but is actually a lengthy roll of paper margin, separated from the main roll of messages just transmitted to the flight crew from ground controllers in Houston, Texas. Seated at the commander’s station, astronaut Charles J. Precourt, commander, checks the latest transmission from a message device called Thermal Imaging Printing System (TIPS).
NASA

Biography

Eileen Collins

Selected by NASA in January 1990, Collins became an astronaut in July 1991. Initially assigned to Orbiter engineering support, Collins has also served on the astronaut support team responsible for Orbiter prelaunch checkout, final launch configuration, crew ingress/egress, landing/recovery, worked in Mission Control as a spacecraft communicator (CAPCOM), served as the Astronaut Office Spacecraft Systems Branch Chief, Chief Information Officer, Shuttle Branch Chief, and Astronaut Safety Branch Chief. Collins served as pilot on STS-63 (February 3-11, 1995) and STS-84 (May 15-24, 1997), and was the commander on STS-93 (July 22-27, 1999) and STS-114 (July 26 to August 9, 2005). A veteran of four space flights, Collins has logged over 872 hours in space. Collins retired from NASA in May 2006.

STS-63 Pilot Eileen M. Collins at the pilot’s station during “hotfiring” procedure to clear leaking thruster prior to rendezvous with Russia’s Mir Space Station. (3-11 Feb. 1995)

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Space Pioneer

Born in Elmira, New York, Eileen Collins became an astronaut in 1991 after being selected for the astronaut program while attending the US Air Force Test Pilot School at Edwards AFB, California

Read her Biography

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