Rep. Gabrielle Giffords walks with assistance as she boards flight to Florida

HOUSTON (KHOU-TV) – U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords was seen publicly for the first time since a January shooting Wednesday when she boarded a NASA flight to Florida. She's headed to Cape Canaveral to watch Endeavour's final launch.

Giffords’ husband, astronaut Mark Kelly, is commanding the mission.

Giffords arrived with a group of people – including a nurse from TIRR Memorial Hermann – in a dark-colored SUV around 9 a.m.

The vehicle drove right up to a waiting NASA plane, and Giffords – guided by a second person—walked up the stairs into the aircraft.