Collins, Eileen (1956–)
Collins, Eileen (1956–)
American astronaut. Born Eileen Marie Collins, Nov 19, 1956, at Elmira, New York; dau. of James E. Collins and Rose Marie Collins; Corning Community College, AS, 1976; Syracuse University, BA, 1978; Stanford University, MS, 1986; Webster University, MA, 1989; m. James Patrick Youngs.
The 1st female pilot of the space shuttle, joined the Air Force (1978); as 2nd female Air Force test pilot, graduated from Air Force Institute of Technology and Air Force Test Pilot School (1985–90); selected by NASA (1990); became the 1st woman to pilot the space shuttle (Feb 3, 1995), when she was second in command of a crew of 6 that made a historical rendezvous with the Russian space station Mir; appointed space shuttle commander of the Columbia, the 1st woman to lead the crew of four (1998); was commander of Discovery (2005).
See also Women in World History.