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NOTE TO EDITORS:
Astronaut visiting Langley, Va. State Fair Sept. 25 &
26
 On Monday, Sept. 25,
astronaut
Christopher J. "Gus" Loria will visit the Langley Research
Center in Hampton, Va., to talk to its employees about NASA's human
spaceflight programs and present seven Langley personnel with
prestigious merit awards. On Tuesday, Sept. 26, he will talk
with students and meet the public at the Virginia
State Fair in Richmond, Va.
Photo Opportunities, Media Availability:
Monday, Sept. 25, at the NASA Langley Research Center,
Hampton, Va.
From 1 :00 to 1:30 p.m., in the NASA Langley Aircraft Hangar.
. With a NASA T-38 aircraft as a backdrop, Loria will be
available to news media for photos and interviews. Members of the
news media are also invited to hear Loria's address to employees at
2:00 p.m. For more information or to schedule, contact Bob
Allen at (757) 864-6176.
Tuesday, Sept. 26, at the Virginia State Fair, Richmond,
Va.
From 11:45 a.m. until 12:00 p.m., outside the Commonwealth
Technology Center at the Virginia State Fair. Loria will be
available to members of the news media for a brief photo and
interview opportunity at the conclusion of his lunch with a group
of about 25 middle school students. For more information,
contact Bob Allen, (757) 864-6176 or Kimberly
Land, (757) 864-9885.
At the NASA Langley Research Center, Sept. 25:
At 2:00 p.m., Sept. 25, Loria
will deliver a colloquium address called "NASA Today and Tomorrow,"
about the International Space Station and Space Shuttle programs in
Langley's H.J.E. Reid Conference Center. After his talk, he
will present seven Langley employees "Silver Snoopy" awards on
behalf of the astronaut corps.
The "Silver Snoopy" is the
astronauts’ award for outstanding performance contributing to
flight safety or mission success. Always presented by an
astronaut, the Silver Snoopy Award consists of a sterling silver
Snoopy lapel pin that has flown aboard a Space Shuttle mission plus
a certificate and commendation letter signed by the presenting
astronaut.
At the Virginia State Fair, Sept. 26:
Loria will talk with middle school
and high school students in the fairground amphitheater at 10:30
a.m. At 11:15 a.m., he will lunch with a group of about 25
students from Gayle Middle School in Fredericksburg, Va.
From noon to 1 :00 p.m., Loria will visit Langley's Virginia State
Fair exhibit in the Commonwealth Technology Center and meet the
public.
Gayle Middle School is part of the
Technology Student Association (TSA), a national technology
education awareness program that gives students expanded
opportunities to learn about technology industries and develop and
demonstrate their technological abilities. Gayle students
have won statewide honors in TSA programs and competed in regional
TSA events.
About Gus Loria:
Loria is a flight-qualified space
shuttle pilot. Most recently, he served as a CapCom, or
Capsule Communicator, for space shuttle mission STS-106 that
concluded on Sept. 20. The mission featured space shuttle
Atlantis’ highly successful return to the International Space
Station. . As CapCom, Loria was the primary voice of Mission
Control to the astronauts in orbit.
A distinguished former U.S. Marine
Corps test pilot, Loria's prior honors and awards include: :
Naval Test Wing Atlantic Pilot of the Year 1995-1996, the
Meritorious Service Medal, two Navy Commendation Medals (1 with
"V"), two Air Medals (both with "V"), four Strike Flight Air Medals
and the Navy Achievement Medal.
Loria is a member of many
organizations, including the Society of Experimental Test Pilots,
the Experimental Aircraft Association (EAA) and the Aircraft Owners
& Pilots Assoc. (AOPA).
Loria has logged 2,000 hours of
flight time in more than 35 different aircraft. As a test
pilot, he flew NASA's X-31, F/A-18 High Alpha Research Vehicle
(HARV) and F-16XL aircraft. In NASA's F-16XL program, he
participated in physiology testing of the prototype High Altitude
& Gravity System (HAGS), a combination of a gravity-suit and a
partial-pressure suit.
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