Jay Greene - Space Shuttle Program

Space Shuttle Program

After the Apollo program concluded, Greene spent two years as a Range Safety Coordinator, planning the procedures that would be followed if something went wrong with the trajectory of the Space Shuttle during launch. He fought to keep the Shuttle from being fitted with a range safety destruct system, which would allow it to be destroyed remotely from the ground. However, he was not successful and believes that he was removed from the position as a result of his stand on the issue.

Greene remained in the flight dynamics branch until 1982, spending 1976 through 1979 as section head and 1980 through 1982 as branch chief. He was a FIDO on STS-1 and worked his last mission as FIDO in 1981 on STS-2, the second Shuttle launch. By that point, his responsibilities in the flight dynamics branch were largely managerial.

That year, at the request of Johnson Space Center director George Abbey, he began the process of training to become a flight director. He worked STS-3 and STS-4 as a backup flight director, learning the job by being paired with the experienced flight director Tommy Holloway and observing him at work. Greene's first mission as flight director in his own right was STS-6, which launched on April 6, 1983. As a flight director, Greene specialized in the ascent shift, considered to be one of the most demanding and dangerous phases of a mission. He worked on ten flights between 1983 and 1986, including STS-61-C, which was notable for having included Rep. Bill Nelson (D-FL) as a member of the crew. In his book about the mission, Nelson characterized Greene as a "no-nonsense type of man," "underpaid and overworked," yet dedicated to his job. His tenth and final mission as lead Flight Director was on STS-51-L.