AMARILLO, Texas – A West Texas airport that carries the name of a 2003 shuttle Columbia victim has unveiled an exhibit saluting NASA astronaut Rick Husband.
The display at Rick Husband Amarillo International Airport includes photos and a model of Columbia as part of "From Amarillo to Outer Space." Some children from schools attended by Amarillo-native Husband were present for Wednesday's ceremony .
Laura Husband of Houston told the crowd of about 300 people that her father wrote to NASA while in junior high school. She says the agency sent him information on becoming an astronaut and he kept those details in his wallet.
Rick Husband, who was an Air Force colonel, reported to Johnson Space Center in 1995 for astronaut training. The entire Columbia crew perished in the February 2003 fiery disaster.