Navy Punishes Shuttle Diver, Seizes Souvenirs
The Navy has punished a crewman aboard a shuttle salvage ship and collected “eight to 10” pieces of Challenger wreckage that had been kept by divers as souvenirs, officials said today.
A woman who has not been identified called Kennedy Space Center security officers Friday and told them a salvage diver aboard the Opportune had mentioned he had obtained personal effects of one of Challenger’s seven astronauts.
The Opportune’s skipper, Lt. Cmdr. Michael Scott, interviewed the ship’s personnel and on Saturday “awarded non-judicial punishment” to one crewman, said Lt. Cmdr. Deborah Burnette, a Navy spokeswoman.
“The crewman is not a diver and had no shuttle debris or personal effects of the astronauts in his possession,” Burnette said.
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