The Shuttle Training Aircraft taxis to the runway with the pilot and commander in the cockpit for practice flights.

At the Shuttle Landing Facility, the Shuttle Training Aircraft (STA) taxis to the runway with the STS-121 pilot and commander in the cockpit for practice flights. The STA is a modified Grumman American Aviation-built Gulf Stream II jet that was modified to simulate an orbiter’s cockpit, motion and visual cues, and handling qualities. In flight, the STA duplicates the orbiter’s atmospheric descent trajectory from approximately 35,000 feet altitude to landing on a runway. Because the orbiter is unpowered during re-entry and landing, its high-speed glide must be perfectly executed the first time. Space Shuttle Discovery is scheduled to launch July 1 on mission STS-121. Photo credit: NASA/Kim Shiflett