Possible Wing Problem with Shuttle

This new article is again dealing with the Discovery shuttle set to launch this month. The article discusses a problem with the outer coating on three of the wing panels show degradation. The NASA Engineering and Safety Center recommend having the three panels be replaced before Discovery flies. But the shuttle program is leaning toward leaving them alone and proceeding with the launch based on data from other engineers. A final decision will be made next week by the top agency officials.

After the past disasters with the Challenger and Columbia shuttles one would think the mangers would take this problem more seriously. During the last two launches NASA engineers warned the NASA mangers about the problems with the shuttles. The engineers were ignored and the past proves what can happen. Even if the wings have survived past launches, they should think of the safety of the astronauts and fix the wings before launch. Furthermore, if they are worried about the cost of fixing these wings, it would be far less than the shuttle exploding and being completely destroyed, not to mention the lives it would save. By postponing the launch by a few days or weeks they would be saving seven lives along with their mission, which would be the ethical choice.

The mangers should learn from their past experiences and decisions. The engineers are trained to make sure the shuttles are built properly and in working condition. By ignoring the engineer's view, the mangers are endangering the lives of seven astronauts. They need to fix the problem before launching the shuttle just to be safe. Ensuring the safety of the astronauts should be there first priority.

Source: http://www.cnn.com/2007/TECH/space/10/11/space.shuttle.ap/index.html