Posted on 07/01/2007 9:58:41 AM PDT by BenLurkin
EDWARDS AFB - Technical issues delayed Saturday's scheduled departure of Space Shuttle Atlantis from NASA Dryden Flight Research Center. Shuttle officials said technicians ran into difficulty while mounting the shuttle atop the modified 747 that will ferry it to Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Atlantis had been "soft-mated" on three supports atop the jet Friday night, but problems with alignment slowed the final lock-down of the connections.
"Engineers and technicians are meeting to discuss their options for completing the mounting of the shuttle to the 747," a statement from NASA Dryden said.
The joined vehicles could depart as early as 5:30 a.m. today, officials said.
A problem with a hydraulic seal on the shuttle, discovered Thursday, caused an earlier delay in leaving Edwards. The seal was replaced Friday, said Leslie Williams, NASA Dryden spokeswoman.
(Excerpt) Read more at avpress.com ...
If memory serves, they fly at around FL 150 at about 200 KIAS. Takes a long time and a lot fuel, I’ll bet. What sight that must be to watch it land!
Look for the union label I always say.
And the low bid contract!
Shuttle leaves Calif. atop jumbo jet 2 hours, 48 minutes ago
EDWARDS AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. - A jumbo jet carrying the space shuttle Atlantis took off Sunday on a return trip to the shuttle’s launch site at Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
A modified Boeing 747 with the shuttle mounted on its back left from the Mojave Desert air base at 6:05 a.m. PDT, said Alan Brown, a spokesman at NASA’s Dryden Flight Research Center at Edwards Air Force Base.
The jet, which stops to refuel at undisclosed locations, was not expected to arrive at Cape Canaveral until at least Monday, with the possibility of a Tuesday arrival if weather is bad, NASA spokesman Bill Johnson said.
Atlantis, carrying seven astronauts, landed June 22 after a 14-day mission to continue building the international space station.
Unfavorable weather at its Florida launch site forced it to divert to its alternate landing site in California.
NASA prefers to land shuttles in Florida to avoid the cost of transporting them back on a cross-country flight.
Why would they be going to Offutt? It’s out the way, big time. Weather is all I can think of, but if so, why not head to Barksdale or Eglin?
Weather. Lots of rain east of Dallas into Louisiana and points beyond. They may have to wait until tomorrow morning to make their next leg.
Thanks.
Welcome! Check the link in post #9 to track the flight as it makes its way back to Florida. FlightAware is a great tool to track airplanes.
Don’t for the scout plane that’s ahead of it, too. It checks out flight conditions in advance, in case bad weather and wind hazards.
Just pitiful. Almost 40 years since man landed on the moon (far over the original cost of course) and our government is still flying an almost broken down space bus around on the back of a jumbo jet. How far would we have been if space exploration had been turned over to the free market from the beginning? A lot further than we are today.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.