Shuttle Astronaut Curtis Brown to appear at this year's Reno Air Races

A native of North Carolina, Brown has logged over 1,190 hours in space. He was the pilot for three of his shuttle missions and the spacecraft commander on his last two.

After an extensive career at the United States Air Force Academy, NASA selected Brown as an astronaut candidate in June 1987. He then completed a one-year training and evaluation program in August 1988 and qualified for flight assignment as a pilot.

Brown's first mission was in 1992 on the Space Shuttle Endeavor. This was an eight-day cooperative mission between the United States and Japan focusing on life science and materials processing experiments in space.

Brown was the spacecraft commander on the most recent launch of the Space Shuttle Discovery. The crewmembers, including John Glenn, supported a variety of research payloads including deployment of the Spartan solar-observing spacecraft, the Hubble Space Telescope Orbital Systems Test Platform and investigations on space flight and the aging process.

With a total of six race classes and a star-studded air show, the NCAR Board of Directors is looking to make this year's event the best ever. NASA astronauts from every space program will serve as grand marshals and the United States Air Force Thunderbirds will present several shows, all courtesy of the Eldorado Hotel Casino and Silver Legacy Resort Casino. The 1999 Reno Air Races and Air Show are Sept. 16-19 at the Reno/Stead Airport. Ticket prices for the Air Races range from $8 general admission to a four-day, reserved seat season pass at $80. Pit Passes, Box Seats, VIP packages and sponsorships are also available. For ticket information, call (775) 972-6333.