Missing tiles not expected to trouble space shuttle

Some heat shield tiles were missing from the nose of the space shuttle Columbia, Astronauts Jack Lousma and Gordon Fullerton reported. A television camera on the ship's mechanical arm was used to inspect the rest of the ship.

Flight director Harold Draughan said the loss of the tiles was not considered a problem for the ship's reentry into the atmosphere Monday. Some tiles were ripped off the spacecraft during its first mission, but the Columbia came through the second flight in good shape.