KSC-2013-2969

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- NASA Administrator Charles Bolden, at the podium, addresses the media assembled for a news conference on a new agency partnership at the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex in Florida. Also participating in the news conference are, from left, Kennedy Space Center Director Robert Cabana, standing, Kennedy's Director of Public Affairs Lisa Malone, and Space Florida Chief Operating Officer Jim Kuzma, both seated. NASA has selected Space Florida, the aerospace economic development agency for the state of Florida, for negotiations toward a partnership agreement to maintain and operate the historic Shuttle Landing Facility, or SLF. NASA issued a request for information to industry in 2012 to identify new and innovative ways to use the facility for current and future commercial and government mission activities. Space Florida's proposal is aligned closely with Kennedy's vision for creating a multiuser spaceport. The SLF, specially designed for space shuttles returning to Kennedy, opened for flights in 1976. The concrete runway is 15,000 feet long and 300 feet wide. The SLF is capable of handling all types and sizes of aircraft and horizontal launch and landing vehicles. For more information on Space Florida, visit http://www.spaceflorida.gov. Photo credit: NASA/Jim Grossmann