KSC-99pp1318

During Terminal Countdown Demonstration Test (TCDT) emergency egress training, STS-103 Commander Curtis L. Brown Jr. practices driving a small armored personnel carrier. Riding on the front is Capt. George Hoggard, a trainer with the KSC/CCAS Fire Department. In the carrier behind Brown is (left to right) Pilot Scott J. Kelly and Mission Specialists Steven L. Smith and John M. Grunsfeld (Ph.D.). 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. The TCDT also provides simulated countdown exercises and opportunities to inspect the mission payloads in the orbiter's payload bay. STS-103 is a "call-up" mission due to the need to replace and repair portions of the Hubble Space Telescope. Four EVA's are planned to make the necessary repairs and replacements on the telescope. The other STS-103 crew members are Mission Specialists C. Michael Foale (Ph.D.), plus Claude Nicollier of Switzerland and Jean-François Clervoy of France, who are with the European Space Agency. The mission is targeted for launch Dec. 6 at 2:37 a.m. EST