So I was looking on the NASA Gallery last night of the pictures of the SCA at Kennedy this week, and was looking at the markings reflecting the shuttles it has carried and then it shows the number of Ferry Flight it flew each orbiter on, But the numbers on some seem much higher than Id expect.OV-101 it shows 57 Ferry Flights and 5 Free Flights. When did it carry Enterprise 57 times??? OV-102 it shows 60 Ferry Flights for Cloumbia... That seemed high to me also, I mean 60 times the SCA ferried her?? OV-103 it shows 20 Ferry FlightsOV-104 it shows 35 Ferry FlightsOV-105 it shows 12 Ferry FlightsTo me some of those numbers seem alot higher, especially Enterprise, Columbia and Challenger. Are those actual times it was ferried?
Quote from: brettreds2k on 04/13/2012 12:55 pmSo I was looking on the NASA Gallery last night of the pictures of the SCA at Kennedy this week, and was looking at the markings reflecting the shuttles it has carried and then it shows the number of Ferry Flight it flew each orbiter on, But the numbers on some seem much higher than Id expect.OV-101 it shows 57 Ferry Flights and 5 Free Flights. When did it carry Enterprise 57 times??? OV-102 it shows 60 Ferry Flights for Cloumbia... That seemed high to me also, I mean 60 times the SCA ferried her?? OV-103 it shows 20 Ferry FlightsOV-104 it shows 35 Ferry FlightsOV-105 it shows 12 Ferry FlightsTo me some of those numbers seem alot higher, especially Enterprise, Columbia and Challenger. Are those actual times it was ferried? SCA makes lots of stops, both for gas and for weather. Each hop counts as a flight.
I believe that is not correct. OV-105 made 7 landings at EAFB. And if you include delivery that makes 8 ferrying opportunities. Knowing that every return to KSC includes at least one stop, 8 does not go into 12.
How do they transport the tailcone engine cover when not attached to an orbiter? During normal ops the orbiter would arrive with it at KSC. Then it would need one if it landed somewhere else to ferry back to KSC.
Quote from: spacecane on 04/17/2012 02:01 pmHow do they transport the tailcone engine cover when not attached to an orbiter? During normal ops the orbiter would arrive with it at KSC. Then it would need one if it landed somewhere else to ferry back to KSC.Trucks would be my guess.It's sort of a "clamshell" design. Two halves, upper and lower. Could fit on a flatbed.
...Not to nit pick, but I asked an Orbiter Handling engineer in the next cube, and the tailcones are broken down into about 6 pieces and crated. They are then shipped by truck back to Dryden.
...The SCAs don't have a cargo door like a 747-F would so there is no way to get the sections inside them. They are usually shipped across country by truck, but if there were to be a TAL abort, they would be carried on a C-17 or C-5 to the landing site.
If this is a SCA thread, then I'd like to ask another question, which a friend posed to me today:Considering that the shuttle is able to separate from the 747 and glide to a landing (c.f. the ALT flights with Enterprise), how feasible would it have been to do the same with Discovery?
Considering that the shuttle is able to separate from the 747 and glide to a landing (c.f. the ALT flights with Enterprise), how feasible would it have been to do the same with Discovery?
Speaking of the SCA and Enterprise, how did they accomplish the release maneuver without Enterprise hitting the SCA? Even though it doesn't look like it, did the 747 nose dive away? How did it do that while not speeding up too fast (since it has engines and Enterprise didn't) so that the tail didn't strike Enterprise?
I will have to add all those explosives to the mix; they have been removed too. Explosives (Nasa Standard Initiators) were used in main landing gear deployment backups, drag chute, cabin door jettison system, overhead window jettisoning and rescue slide from the cabin, to name a few.To repeat what was done with Enterprise, also the quick release for the STS payload on the SCA would have to be reinstated. Was it done with explosive bolts? and which of the above explosive systems were installed on Enterprise during ALT tests? No chute at least, but what about the others?
Quote from: spacecane on 04/18/2012 12:53 pmSpeaking of the SCA and Enterprise, how did they accomplish the release maneuver without Enterprise hitting the SCA? Even though it doesn't look like it, did the 747 nose dive away? How did it do that while not speeding up too fast (since it has engines and Enterprise didn't) so that the tail didn't strike Enterprise?The SCA went into a shallow dive at idle thrust where the orbiter was actually providing lift. At release, the SCA went down and left and the orbiter climbed and went right.
What are the devices shown in the green box?
Was the separation mechanism the same between Enterprise and SCA versus Orbiters and their ET's?
Quote from: jcopella on 05/14/2012 04:05 pmWhat are the devices shown in the green box? IR missile countermeasure devices
Jim: do you know if these are on both 905 & 911?