<Tr> <Th> Epoch </Th> <Td> 13 April 1981 </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td_colspan="2"> <P> </P> John W. Young and Robert L. Crippen Space Shuttle program STS - 2 → </Td> </Tr> <P> STS - 1 (Space Transportation System - 1) was the first orbital spaceflight of NASA's Space Shuttle program . The first orbiter, Columbia, launched on 12 April 1981 and returned on 14 April, 54.5 hours later, having orbited the Earth 37 times . Columbia carried a crew of two--mission commander John W. Young and pilot Robert L. Crippen . It was the first American manned space flight since the Apollo - Soyuz Test Project in 1975 . STS - 1 was also the only maiden test flight of a new US spacecraft to carry a crew, though it was preceded by atmospheric testing of the orbiter and ground testing of the space shuttle system . </P> <P> The launch occurred on the 20th anniversary of the first - ever human spaceflight . This was a coincidence rather than a celebration of the anniversary; a technical problem had prevented STS - 1 from launching two days earlier, as was planned . </P>

When was the first us space shuttle launched