The media swarm around Pilot Rick Svetkoff after his test flight of the Starfighter F-104 in the background.

The media swarm around Pilot Rick Svetkoff after his test flight of the Starfighter F-104, in the background. The aircraft is taking part in a series of pathfinder test missions from the space shuttle runway. Two flights will generate test data to validate sonic boom assumptions about the potential impacts of suborbital and orbital commercial spaceflight from the facility. NASA is assessing the environmental impact of such flights. Starfighters Inc. of Clearwater, Fla., will perform the flights to help in assessing suborbital space launch trajectories from the runway and paving the way for future commercial space tourism and research flights from the facility. Photo credit: NASA/Kim Shiflett