Report: Astronauts Flew Drunk On at Least Two Occasions

July 27, 2007 — -- A report to NASA released today cites two cases "where astronauts had been so intoxicated prior to flight that flight surgeons and/or fellow astronauts raised concerns to local on-scene leadership regarding flight safety. However, the individuals were still permitted to fly."

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The report, prepared at NASA's request by an outside panel of doctors, engineers and present and former astronauts, does not name the astronauts or specify on what flights they flew.

After the report, NASA said today at a news conference that it would develop a written code of conduct, take anonymous surveys to improve communication and conduct an internal safety review.

"The members of our astronaut corps, civilian and military, represent a group of America's most extraordinary and talented individuals, by any standard," said Shana Dale, NASA's deputy administrator. "For almost the entire history of the astronaut corps, our experience has been that NASA's astronauts conduct themselves with integrity, professionalism and a desire to bring honor to America and our nation's space program."

Dale emphasized that the report was based on anonymous allegations and anecdotal evidence and that any specific information obtained by the committee would be subject to rules of medical record privacy.

"We did not get into specific information," said Col. Richard Bachmann, dean of the Air Force School of Aerospace Medicine, who chaired the panel."The issue of concern is that the medical advisors or peers, who should have felt empowered to raise concerns, were not."

Dale said NASA would follow the panel's recommendation that rules be made more clear, and people encouraged to speak up when they're worried about safety. But she added, "Chenages in culture do not happen overnight. It's a process."

A source at the agency, who asked not to be identified, said much of the information in the report is based on anonymous interviews with astronauts and other NASA personnel, many of whom passed on hearsay information.

"The findings are unsubstantiated," the source said, calling some of them "barroom chat that's been turned into an official report."

The report does not specify whether the drinking was before space shuttle flights, Russian Soyuz flights or even flights routinely made by astronauts in T-38 training jets.

Three current astronauts, however, told ABC News they were briefed about the report a week ago and say the two cases of intoxication mentioned in it involve space launches.