This is the story of astronaut Eileen Collins. Born and raised in Elmira, NY, a declining industrial town, she rose from poverty to pilot and command four space shuttle missions, including the first one after the Columbia disaster. She was the first woman to do so.
Based on the book, “Through the Glass Ceiling to the Stars: The Story of the First American Woman to Command a Space Mission” by Collins and Jonathan H. Ward (writer of four well-received books on the American space program), her story is told first hand, by her husband and daughter, and by people with whom she worked and flew at NASA.
Born into an unstable Irish Catholic family in 1956, Eileen knew a lot of hardship as a child, being on welfare and living in government housing at times due to her father’s alcoholism and resultant erratic financial state. The parents separated, and money was always tight.
Despite problems at home and unhappiness in school, Eileen did have one burning interest: she wanted to fly. Scrimping, saving, and working multiple jobs, she scraped together the $1,000 need for flight school and at the age of 19 got her pilot’s license.
After local college Eileen entered the air force and pilot training programs. She met her husband-to-be in these programs. She stayed with the military while he left to pursue a career as a commercial pilot. Her career led her to the NASA program and finally, to become an astronaut.
Her first mission had her piloting the space shuttle Discovery for a rendezvous with the Russian space station Mir. Only two other women piloted space shuttles in the programs 30 year run.
Next came a flight aboard the shuttle Atlantis, which did dock with the Mir and exchange astronaut for cosmonaut. Again Eileen piloted the spacecraft.
Her third flight, aboard the Columbia, was as commander of the mission. This time there was a near disaster, as a fault in the engines reduced lift and could have caused a catastrophic explosion. Throughout Eileen maintained her steely composure, and the flight was a success.
Her fourth and final flight, coming two years after the Columbia was destroyed due to damaged heat shield tiles, was a commander of the Atlantis. Despite two years of NASA work on correcting the conditions that led to the previous catastrophe, a similar situation occurred. Despite that, Eileen brought the mission to a successful conclusion.
This biography, made up completely of interviews and historic visuals, runs like a thriller due to the excellent screenplay and suspense-building editing. It brings to light the career of a real American hero whose exploits may have not received the credit they are due because of her gender.
This is an inspirational documentary, especially for girls and women who deserve to learn more about the successes of other women.
Runtime: One hour, 41 minutes
Availability: In theaters
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