Costs of Government Funded Trips for Invitees To Attend Space Shuttle Launches at Kennedy Space Center, Florida

In response to a congressional request, GAO investigated the Government's practice of inviting and transporting guests at Government expense to witness space shuttle launches at the John F. Kennedy Space Center, Florida.

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) usually invites several thousand guests, who customarily obtain and pay for their own transportation, to view each of the space shuttle launches at the Kennedy Space Center. GAO found that NASA spent an estimated total of $1,460,077 on its guest operations program through the ninth space shuttle launch on November 28, 1983. Other Federal agencies spent a total of $31,173 related to guests at the launches, and contractors paid $36,165 for receptions related to the Manned Flight Awareness Program. NASA officials plan to review the guest operations program and expect future guest activity to decrease since most historic firsts have occurred.