Larry LaRose (born February 13, 1953) is an American

NASA The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agency of the US federal government responsible for the civil space program, aeronautics research, and space research. NASA was established in 1958, succeeding t ...

flight engineer. Born in

Worland, Wyoming Worland is a city in Washakie County, Wyoming, United States. The population was 5,487 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Washakie County. It is located within the Big Horn Basin and along the Big Horn River in northwestern Wyoming. ...

, Larry LaRose enlisted in the

United States Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the air service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part of the United States Army Signal ...

during the

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (also known by #Names, other names) was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vie ...

, first as a mechanic and then attending flight school to become a flight engineer. In 1979

recruited him to work for the space program as it transitioned from the Apollo program to the space shuttle, starting with the "zero g" program using airplanes to simulate zero gravity for astronaut training and science experiments. In 1989, LaRose was selected to transfer to

Biggs Army Airfield Biggs Army Airfield (formerly Biggs Air Force Base) is a United States Army military airbase located on the Fort Bliss military base in El Paso, Texas. History Biggs Field/Biggs Army Airfield (1916–47) On 15 June 1919, following an attack b ...

in El Paso, Texas, to assume the responsibility of the El Paso FOL orward Operating Locationmanager. He began helping train pilots in the

Shuttle Training Aircraft The Shuttle Training Aircraft (STA) was a NASA training vehicle that duplicated the Space Shuttle's approach profile and handling qualities, allowing Space Shuttle pilots to simulate Shuttle landings under controlled conditions before attempting ...

program to return from space in space shuttle orbiters that were depleted of power and had to glide in under human control. He also worked for the Shuttle Carrier Aircraft Program, which transported shuttles on the back of modified Boeing 747 aircraft. LaRose retired from

in 2008 after 30 years of service and more than 120 shuttle missions. Following his retirement, he took a job with a private contractor that transported shuttles. LaRose has been the flight engineer for three space shuttle's final voyages; flying the Discovery shuttle to Washington, D.C. (Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum Udvar-Hazy Center in Chantilly, Virginia) on April 17, 2012, the Enterprise to New York (Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum in Manhattan) on April 27, 2012, and the Endeavor to Edwards AFB and then Los Angeles (California Science Center) from September 19–21, 2012. This does not include the space shuttle Atlantis which touched down from its final mission on July 21, 2011 at Kennedy Space Center in Florida, where it remained. LaRose has also worked in other programs with NASA, including the Fall 2011 Operation IceBridge campaign over Antarctica.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:LaRose, Larry 1953 births People from Lander, Wyoming NASA people Living people Aviators from Wyoming People from Worland, Wyoming