STS-81 preflight photos taken at the Kennedy Space Center

S97-00253 (10 Dec. 1996) ---- After clearing the high bay door of the Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB), the space shuttle Atlantis slowly moves out to Launch Pad 39B along the crawlerway. Atlantis is scheduled to liftoff Jan. 12 on STS-81, the first Shuttle mission of 1997. The planned nine-day flight will include the fifth Shuttle-Mir docking.