NASA let astronauts fly while drunk

Nasa let astronauts fly drunk on at least two occasions, an independent panel said in a report released today.

The report gave no names and did not say when the drinking occurred, how many astronauts were involved, or whether they were flying on the space shuttle, the Russian Soyuz spaceship, or aboard Nasa’s training aeroplanes.

Nasa officials let them fly even after flight surgeons and fellow astronauts raised concerns that flight safety might be jeopardised, according to the report.

The panel, which prepared the report, was created by Nasa after the arrest of astronaut Lisa Nowak in February on charges she tried to kidnap her rival in a love triangle.