As NASA awaits the results of the Columbia Accident Investigation Board (CAIB), the agency is forming a team to begin planning for the space shuttle's return to flight.

Working toward a notional schedule of launching as early as September, the team will examine issues regarding Columbia's flight, including foam insulation on the external tank, policies concerning photographic and radar coverage of shuttle flights, and the possibility of on-orbit tile repair.

In a March 12 memo, Associate Administrator for Space Flight William Readdy instructed Mike Kostelnik, deputy associate administrator for the space station and shuttle, to establish and direct a return to flight team and provide a preliminary plan by April 1.

"While the [CAIB] and NASA continue their investigation into the cause of the Columbia mishap, it is important for NASA's Space Flight Enterprise to begin focusing on those activities necessary to expeditiously return the space shuttle to flight," Readdy wrote. "We will adjust this preliminary planning as necessary as we receive recommendations from the CAIB." The results of the CAIB, which is led by Adm. Hal Gehman (USN ret.), are expected by late summer.

The return-to-flight team will include representatives of the Space Shuttle Program (SSP) office and supporting centers involved in human space flight, as well as other NASA center and headquarters personnel as needed.

During a press briefing in Washington March 14, NASA Administrator Sean O'Keefe stressed that NASA does not plan to implement changes in the shuttle program until after the CAIB reports its findings. "There is nothing in this particular procedure to alter or implement any particular effort to return to flight until such time as that report is available," O'Keefe said. However, "we're not just sitting here waiting for a report to come in from the Gehman board, and then getting started as soon as we open up page one."

Readdy said the activities of the return to flight team should include:

* A thorough review of key shuttle systems, including the insulation approach currently used by the Lockheed Martin-built external tank.

* Development of operational concepts for on-orbit inspection and repair of the shuttle's thermal protection system.

* A review of policies on photographic and radar coverage of critical phases of the shuttle's flight.

* A review of failure modes and effects analyses, critical items lists, waivers and hazards.

* A review of the process for identifying and resolving safety issues while the shuttle is in flight, including the "appropriate level of management visibility and decision in that process."

The return-to-flight team also will work closely with the leadership of the International Space Station (ISS) program to ensure that its plans "support an optimal return to the tasks of ISS assembly and continued logistics support," Readdy wrote.

To provide oversight, Readdy is establishing the Space Flight Leadership Council, consisting of Kostelnik, the directors of the Johnson, Kennedy, Marshall and Stennis centers, and the associate administrator for safety and mission assurance. Readdy will co-chair the council with Michael Greenfield, associate deputy administrator for technical programs. "Much needs to be done as we move forward to fly again," Readdy wrote. "I anticipate that our processes will be strengthened and ... safety of flight enhanced as we return to flight."

The next two public hearings of the CAIB will be on March 17 and 18 in Houston. The March 17 hearing will focus on the distribution of shuttle debris and what it says about the accident timeline, as well as orbital debris.

Special Report: Columbia Disintegrates