KSC-99pp0452

Capt. Steve Kelly, with Space Gateway Support, congratulates STS-96 Mission Specialist Ellen Ochoa (Ph.D.), who successfully completed training in the small armored personnel carrier that is part of emergency egress training during Terminal Countdown Demonstration Test (TCDT) activities. The tracked vehicle could be used by the crew in the event of an emergency at the pad during which the crew must make a quick exit from the area. Behind them (from left) are crew members Mission Specialist Valery Ivanovich Tokarev, Pilot Rick Douglas Husband and Mission Specialist Julie Payette. Holding the camera is Douglas Hamilton, a Canadian flight surgeon. Payette is with the Canadian Space Agency. Tokarev represents the Russian Space Agency. The TCDT also provides simulated countdown exercises and opportunities to inspect the mission payloads in the orbiter's payload bay. Mission STS-96, which is scheduled for liftoff on May 20 at 9:32 a.m., is a logistics and resupply mission for the International Space Station, carrying such payloads as a Russian crane, the Strela; a U.S.-built crane; the Spacehab Oceaneering Space System Box (SHOSS), a logistics items carrier; and STARSHINE, a student-led experiment