Editing Space Shuttle Columbia (section)

===Construction milestones===
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! style="background:#efefef;" | Date
! style="background:#efefef;" | Milestone<ref>{{cite web|title=Shuttle Orbiter Columbia (OV-102)|url=http://science.ksc.nasa.gov/shuttle/resources/orbiters/columbia.html|publisher=NASA/KSC|access-date=November 7, 2012|archive-date=June 6, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190606093616/https://science.ksc.nasa.gov/shuttle/resources/orbiters/columbia.html|url-status=dead}}</ref>
|-
| July 26, 1972 
| Contract Awarded to North American Rockwell
|-
| March 25, 1975 
| Start long-lead fabrication aft fuselage
|-
| November 17, 1975 
| Start long-lead fabrication of crew module
|-
| June 28, 1976 
| Start assembly of crew module
|-
| September 13, 1976 
| Start structural assembly of aft fuselage
|-
| December 13, 1977
| Start assembly upper forward fuselage
|-
| January 3, 1977 
| Start assembly vertical stabilizer
|-
| August 26, 1977 
| Wings arrive at Palmdale from Grumman
|-
| October 28, 1977 
| Lower forward fuselage on dock, Palmdale
|-
| November 7, 1977 
| Start of Final Assembly
|-
| February 24, 1978 
| Body flap on dock, Palmdale
|-
| April 28, 1978 
| Forward payload bay doors on dock, Palmdale
|-
| May 26, 1978 
| Upper forward fuselage mate
|-
| July 7, 1978 
| Complete mate forward and aft payload bay doors
|-
| September 11, 1978 
| Complete forward RCS
|-
| February 3, 1979 
| Complete combined systems test, Palmdale
|-
| February 16, 1979 
| Airlock on dock, Palmdale
|-
| March 5, 1979
| Complete postcheckout
|-
| March 8, 1979 
| Closeout inspection, Final Acceptance Palmdale
|-
| March 8, 1979 
| Rollout from Palmdale to Dryden
|-
| March 12, 1979 
| Overland transport from Palmdale to Edwards
|-
| March 20, 1979 
| SCA Ferry Flight from DFRC to Biggs AFB, Texas
|-
| March 22, 1979 
| SCA Ferry flight from Biggs AFB to Kelly AFB, Texas
|-
| March 24, 1979 
| SCA Ferry flight from Kelly AFB to Eglin AFB, Florida
|-
| March 24, 1979 
| SCA Ferry flight from Eglin, AFB to KSC
|-
| November 3, 1979 
| Auxiliary Power Unit hot fire tests, OPF KSC
|-
| December 16, 1979 
| Orbiter integrated test start, KSC
|-
| January 14, 1980 
| Orbiter integrated test complete, KSC
|-
| February 20, 1981 
| Flight Readiness Firing
|-
| April 12, 1981 
| First Flight (STS-1)
|}