[DOC] [TLE] First Shuttle Launch | NASA [PAR] A new era in space flight began on April 12, 1981, when Space Shuttle Columbia
, or STS-1, soared into orbit from ... The orbiter would launch like a rocket and 
land like a plane. ... Only the massive external fuel tank would burn up as it fell 
back to Earth. .... 28, 1986, as Challenger lifted off on its 10th mission, STS-51L. [DOC] [TLE] NASA - The Space Shuttle [PAR] Since 1981, NASA space shuttles have been rocketing from the Florida coast into 
... to Earth and land like a giant glider, the shuttle was the world's first reusable... [DOC] [TLE] What Was the Space Shuttle? | NASA [PAR] The space shuttle launched like a rocket and landed like a glider. ... The first 
space shuttle flight took place April 12, 1981. ... The external tank dropped off the 
orbiter and then burned up in Earth's atmosphere. .... The heavy-lift launch 
vehicle will carry Orion beyond low Earth orbit, where the International Space 
Station orbits... [DOC] [TLE] Space Shuttle - Wikipedia [PAR] The Shuttle stack launched vertically like a conventional rocket. It lifted off under 
the power of its two SRBs and three main engines, which were fueled by liquid... [DOC] [TLE] Space Shuttle Columbia - Wikipedia [PAR] Space Shuttle Columbia was the first space-rated orbiter in NASA's Space 
Shuttle fleet. It launched for the first time on mission STS-1 on April 12, 1981, the 
first flight ... Columbia was originally scheduled to lift off in late 1979, however the 
launch ..... climate, and aerodynamic design of space launch vehicles and aircraft
. [DOC] [TLE] Human spaceflight - Wikipedia [PAR] Human spaceflight is space travel with a crew or passengers aboard the 
spacecraft. Spacecraft carrying people may be operated directly, by human crew, 
or it may be either remotely operated from ground stations on Earth or be 
autonomous, able to carry out a specific mission with no human involvement. ... 
These rockets were large enough to be adapted to carry the first artificial... [DOC] [TLE] Space Shuttle program - Wikipedia [PAR] The Space Shuttle program, officially called the Space Transportation System (
STS), was the United States government's manned launch vehicle program from 
1981 to 2011, administered by NASA and officially beginning in 1972. ... 
Enterprise's first test flight was on February 18, 1977, only five years after the 
Shuttle... [DOC] [TLE] STS-1 - Wikipedia [PAR] STS-1 (Space Transportation System-1) was the first orbital spaceflight of NASA's 
Space Shuttle program. The first orbiter, Columbia, launched on 12 April 1981 
and returned on 14 ... It was the first American manned space flight since the 
Apollo-Soyuz Test Project in 1975. ..... Columbia lifts off at the beginning of STS-1
. [DOC] [TLE] History Of Space Shuttles: Remembering the fleet of U.S. space ... [PAR] The U.S. Air Force came up with the first concept for a winged spacecraft  a ... 
The X-15 would continue on to space, drop off a satellite in orbit and fly back 
down to Earth. ... X-15 was a 50-ft. rocket aircraft launched 199 times from under 
the wing of a ... NASA didn't like the name, wanting to call the shuttle Constitution. [DOC] [TLE] First space shuttle astronauts mark STS-1 and STS-2 35th ... [PAR] Sep 19, 2016 ... NASA's first space shuttle launch, 35 years ago, demonstrated a winged orbiter 
could lift off like a rocket and land like an plane, such that it could fly again. ... 
Chuck Yeager and some [other officials] decided that these are the ... off the top 
of the 747 [Shuttle Carrier Aircraft] and then backed up ... 14, 1981. [DOC] [TLE] Space shuttle program to end 30-year run with Atlantis launch ... [PAR] Jul 6, 2011 ... The final space shuttle flight is slated to launch on Friday. ... it will be the final 
flight of NASA's 30-year old Space Transportation System. ... this is the 135th 
shuttle flight since Columbia first took off for space on April 12, 1981. ... truck, 
and also the first manned craft to lift

Question: These transports, first sent up in 1981, lift off like a rocket & land like a plane
Answer: space shuttles