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Primary shuttle contractor sees layoffs by Oct. 1, Houston Chronicle
"The Houston-based company employs approximately 8,100 employees at its Florida, Texas and Alabama sites, including nearly 3,000 in the Houston area. The cuts will reduce as many as 400 positions from the Houston office."
United Space Alliance Announces Sweeping Layoffs, WESH
"The Houston-based company said in a news release that 800 to 1000 jobs could be lost in Florida."
USA to lay off up to 1,000 Florida shuttle workers, Orlando Sentinel
"USA said it employs approximately 8,100 employees at its Florida, Texas and Alabama sites. The layoffs will hit about 800-1000 employees in Florida, about 300-400 employees in Texas and about 10 in Alabama, the company said."
United Space Alliance to reduce workforce by 15%; about 10 jobs in Huntsville, Huntsville Times
"Our workforce has known for several years that the space shuttle program has been scheduled to end, but layoffs are always difficult for everyone involved," said company President/CEO Virginia Barnes. "The accomplishments of this team are unmatched in human spaceflight. We acknowledge the tremendous talent and commitment of our teammates and congratulate them on their achievements."
Nasa space shuttle firm to cut 1,000 jobs, BBC
"People being laid off now is just the beginning. Many more thousands will be laid of as the shuttle programme is wound down," Keith Cowing, the editor of space specialist website Nasa Watch, told the BBC World Service."
We knew it was coming, but the expectation was - until President Obama terminated the Constellation Program - that the Space Shuttle would give way to a successor program. Sadly that is not to be. Those of us who have worked on the Shuttle Program can be proud of its accomplishments, even if it does prove to be the end of the line for U.S. human space flight. It seems very unlikely that a decision on whether or not to build a follow-on vehicle, delayed until 2015, will be affirmative. Starting over is much more costly and difficult than continuing, even with major modifications. The Administration certainly understands that.
I hope that one or more of the commercial companies succeeds in developing the capability to ferry humans to low earth orbit. There appears to be no practical business case for any of them to make the investment required to go beyond that in our lifetime.
Better tell the kids that, if they want to grow up to be astronauts, they had better learn Chinese or Russian, or possibly Hindi.
The sound you hear in the background isn't wailing or gnashing of teeth; it's the Fat Lady warming up before signing!