After that,space station partners will rely on Russian and private launch vehicles to ferry supplies to the orbiter.

VOA: standard.2010.04.05

An attempt to launch a lifeboat by ferry crews after the man was spotted in the sea had to be abandoned because of the weather conditions.

BBC: Ferry passenger dies after falling overboard

The Third Era began in earnest in 1981, with the launch of the first Space Shuttle, Columbia, a mostly reusable workhorse designed to ferry astronauts, research experiments, satellites and equipment into Earth orbit.

FORBES: Launching the Next Era in Space Travel and Exploration