FED: Life of RAAF pilot remembered in Discovery

AAP General News (Australia)
12-20-1999
FED: Life of RAAF pilot remembered in Discovery

BRISBANE, Dec 20 AAP - An Australian defence force pilot will be remembered in space
today, his personal effects going into orbit on the US space shuttle Discovery.

Aboard the shuttle are the wings, flag and a photograph of former Amberley-based RAAF
pilot Tony Short, killed in April on an RAAF mission off Malaysia.

The momentoes are travelling into space on the request of Flight Lieutenant Short's
young son Ben.

Instrumental in fulfilling Ben's wish was one of the NASA crew members aboard Discovery,
who had trained with Flt Lt Short in the US.

Widow Kim and Ben, who were at Cape Canaveral for the launch, were not available for
comment (EDS: because of an exclusivity contract with a commercial television network).

Flt Lt Short, 31, from Albury in New South Wales, and Squadron leader Stephen Hobbs,
33, from Canberra, died when their F-111G slammed into a mountain on Aur island off the
Malay peninsula in the South China Sea on April 18.

The man had been involved in a night maritime strike exercise along with three other
F-111 aircraft.

Discovery blasted into orbit today - its ninth launch attempt - on a mission to put
the out-of-commission Hubble Space Telescope back in working order.

AAP sd/bdm/de

KEYWORD: US SHUTTLE AUST

1999 AAP Information Services Pty Limited (AAP) or its Licensors.