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A charred piece of an Israeli Air Force flag that Israeli Astronaut Ilan Ramon took with him into space has been found in the Texas countryside, according to reports today. NASA officials said they were aware that Ramon had taken IAF paraphernalia along with him on the voyage, particularly symbols such as the flag.

Remains of Israeli astronaut Ilan Ramon have been recovered in one of the debris fields in the southwestern US and a funeral is expected to be held in Israel next week, media reports said. An IDF attache in the US has informed the Ramon family of the find, which NASA has confirmed. The reports follow news that a charred piece of an Israeli Air Force flag, which Ramon took with him aboard the Columbia shuttle, has been found in Texas.

The body of the identified Israeli astronaut (radio) The body of the Israeli astronaut Ilan Ramon killed Saturday during the explosion of the Columbia shuttle was identified and it will be buried the next week in Israel, announced Wednesday morning the public radio israélienne.Le Israeli ministry of Defense received information coming from the United States on the "unquestionable" identification of the body of Ilan Ramon, added the radio without giving other details. NASA launched a vast operation of research in order to clear up the mystery of the disintegration of Columbia and to find the bodies of the seven...

Long before Colonel Ilan Ramon flew into space on the ill-fated Columbia space shuttle that broke up over Texas on Saturday, he was the youngest pilot (27 at the time) to take part in the June 17, 1981 Israeli air strike on the Osirak nuclear reactor in Iraq. He was chosen for the Iraqi mission despite the fact that he had no operational combat experience. Ramon had begun his military service in 1972, but was still in pilot training during the 1973 Yom Kippur War. "Ilan was only a captain, but we knew he was the right choice for the...

Jerusalem (CNSNews.com) - The daughter of Israeli astronaut Ilan apparently had a premonition that her father was not going to return from space safely, Ramon's widow Rona said in an interview with the Israeli media. Israelis were still grappling on Monday with the harsh reality that their hero Ramon was not going to return home. He died along with six Americans on Saturday, when the space shuttle Columbia disintegrated on re-entry into Earth's atmosphere. Rona Ramon spoke to Israeli reporters after family, friends and Israeli officials, including Israel's ambassador to Washington, arrived in Texas to be with her and the...

Rona, the wife of astronaut Col. Ilan Ramon, told Israeli reporters in Houston on Sunday night that she didn't have any particular premonitions of disaster while waiting for her husbands return. But she recalls now that during the launch, when everyone was on a high because it was so successful, her daughter, Noa, 5, cried out, " 'I lost my daddy.' It turns out that she knew." Speaking after family members arrived from Israel to comfort her, she called on NASA to continue its space program. Wearing dark sunglasses and a blue blouse with a space shuttle logo, she said...

The widow of Israel's first astronaut, who died in the Columbia space shuttle disaster, today spoke movingly of her enormous pride in her husband and said: "He is now part of the universe forever." Displaying the same courage that made Israeli Air Force Colonel Ilan Ramon, 48, a national hero, Rona Ramon emerged from private grieving in Houston to give her country's ambassador to the United States a message of hope and understanding. "She knew he died very happy. This was the height of his career," said ambassador Danny Ayalon. He echoed the widow's tribute, adding: "These brave astronauts died...

February 2nd, 2003 Official IDF Statement IDF Chief of Staff Lieutenant General Moshe Ya'alon, Air Force Commander Major General Dan Halutz, commanders and soldiers of the IDF, all share the grief over the tragedy that befell the space shuttle Columbia upon its return to earth. In this difficult time, out hearts are with the families of Ilan Ramon, and the other six astronauts of the Columbia Space Shuttle. In embarking on this space flight, Ramon undertook an important mission on both a national and international level, whose purpose was to expand human knowledge. Colonel Ilan Ramon is an Israeli air...

February 2nd, 2003 Reaching for the Stars - Israel's First Astronaut In November 1995, former US President Bill Clinton and former Israeli Prime Minister Shimon Peres agreed that an Israeli astronaut would participate in a NASA space mission. During this period, the IAF displayed interest in space research due to the growing significance of the field in the following areas: meteorology, communications, navigation, forewarning and intelligence. As such, the IAF presented NASA with a candidate. In addition, the continued cooperation with NASA was an important goal of its own. The criteria by which candidates were chosen was set by NASA...

February 2nd, 2003 Colonel Ilan Ramon: bios Colonel Ilan Ramon, born on June 20, 1954, in Tel-Aviv, was the son of a Holocaust survivor. In 1974, Col. Ramon graduated as a combat fighter pilot from the Israel Air Force (IAF) Flight School. From 1974-1976 he participated in A-4 Basic Training and Operations. Between the years 1976 and 1980, Col. Ramon trained on the Mirage III-C in training maneuvers and operations. In 1980, as one of the IAF's establishment team of the first F-16 Squadron in Israel, he attended the F-16 Training Course at Hill Air Force Base, Utah. From 1981-1983,...

Ilan Ramon, the first Israeli national in space, was " fulfilling everyone's dream, to be the first Israeli in space," according to Israel's Channel Two. Ilan Ramon His father was at the television studio as the country waited for touch-down, with a live broadcast from Cape Canaveral. Ramon was 48, an air forced colonel with considerable flight experience. He was the son of a holocaust survivor. He has served during the Yom Kippur war in 1973, and in Lebanon in 1982. He was involved in the destruction of an unfinished Iraqi nuclear reactor in 1981. Ramon had been preparing to...

National Aeronautics and Space AdministrationLyndon B. Johnson Space Center Houston, Texas 77058 Biographical Data RICK DOUGLAS HUSBAND (COLONEL, USAF) NASA ASTRONAUT PERSONAL DATA: Born July 12, 1957, in Amarillo, Texas. Married. Two children. He enjoys singing, water and snow skiing, cycling, and spending time with his family. EDUCATION: Graduated from Amarillo High School, Amarillo, Texas, in 1975. Received a bachelor of science degree in mechanical engineering from Texas Tech University in 1980, and a master of science degree in mechanical engineering from California State University, Fresno, in 1990. ORGANIZATIONS: Member of the Society of Experimental Test Pilots, Tau Beta...

Shuttle has NOT been heard from or seen on tracking radar since 0800Hrs CDT. No contact at Merrit Island tracking station, no voice comm...DEVELOPING.

All eyes are on Ilan Ramon As poster boys for the Israel Space Agency go, it does not come much better than Colonel Ilan Ramon. I know my flight is very symbolic for the people of Israel, especially the survivors, the Holocaust survivors, because I was born in Israel, many people will see this as a dream that is come true Ilan Ramon As the son of an Auschwitz survivor, who grew up to become a fighter pilot in the Israeli air force and fought in the 1973 Arab-Israeli War - his personal history is intertwined with that of...