Minor Damage To The Secondary Hull

[Planetman]

Laforge! Get to work! Picard out!

Space Shuttle Enterprise Damaged On Way to New Home


Wing of space shuttle Enterprise (left) scraping against piling.

The wing of the space shuttle Enterprise was damaged on its journey from New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport to its new home at the Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum in Manhattan.

The shuttle was en route to a New Jersey marina, its first destination on a two-part trip, when the tip of the wing scraped a piling in Jamaica Bay.

“While approaching the railroad bridge, a sudden microburst of wind, measured at 35 knots, caused the rub panel foam protective layer of the wingtip of the Enterprise to graze the protective wood piling bumpers in the water,” Luke Sacks, a spokesman for the Intrepid Museum, said in a statement. “The bridge was not involved. There was no damage to the bridge and light cosmetic damage to the protective layer.”

Though the accident put a damper on the Enterprise’s trip, Sacks says it will not slow down its progress.

“It will not have an impact on the timing for arrival or display at Intrepid — both are moving ahead as scheduled,” Sacks said.

After a brief stay at the New Jersey marina, the Enterprise will be transported up the Hudson River to its new home, where it will lifted by crane onto the Intrepid, a retired Navy aircraft carrier.



The Enterprise’s long journey began in April at the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum’s Stephen F. Udvar-Hazy Center in Chantilly, Va., where it was on display. The Smithsonian is becoming the home of the shuttle Discovery, which flew 39 times in space from 1984 to 2011. Enterprise, the first shuttle to be built, was used for landing tests in the late 1970s.

When the Enterprise left the Smithsonian, it was placed nose to nose with Discovery in what the Intrepid Museum described as a “historic moment” and an “emotional send off.”

The Enterprise then traveled to Kennedy Airport on the back of a NASA Shuttle Carrier Aircraft, a modified Boeing 747. The airport is about 20 miles from the museum.

Despite the damage done to its wing, the Enterprise is expected to arrive at the Intrepid Museum later this month. It will be displayed to the public beginning in July.

[alpha_omega]

Too bad she isn't still flying.

[Frazod]

Nice addition to the Intrepid Museum. I need to go back there one of these days.

[listopencil]

Looks like it barely missed the starboard nacelle.

[qabbaan]

Originally Posted by alpha_omega

Too bad she isn't still flying.

Enterprise never actually flew in space. It was the test model and was supposed to be fitted for orbital flight but due to later design changes, it never was.

[mlyonsd]

Originally Posted by frazod

Nice addition to the Intrepid Museum. I need to go back there one of these days.

Pretty cool place, especially if you consider her history and what she has been through.

[RealSNR]

"Captain, I need at least an hour to get the warp engines back up and running"

"You have 20 minutes, Mr. Laforge"

[alpha_omega]

Originally Posted by qabbaan

Enterprise never actually flew in space. It was the test model and was supposed to be fitted for orbital flight but due to later design changes, it never was.

You're right...i meant to say..." i wish they were still flying".

[BigMeatballDave]

I'm still fuming over the US Air Force Museum in Dayton not getting a shuttle.

[whoman69]

Originally Posted by qabbaan

Enterprise never actually flew in space. It was the test model and was supposed to be fitted for orbital flight but due to later design changes, it never was.

Unlike her naval versions which was the most decorated ship of WWII. Her successor was the first nuclear powered aircraft carrier and is the second oldest commissioned vessel in the United States Navy after the USS Constitution, a frigate launched in 1797 that has not served in active duty since 1881. The Big E is set to be decommissioned in 2013, replaced soon after by USS Gerald R Ford.

The shuttle was originally to be called Constitution but that name was changed by a write-in vote by Star Trek fans. The shuttle was to have been refit to be the 2nd shuttle to take an orbital flight, but final design changes meant it was cheaper to build Challenger from a test frame. When Challenger was destroyed NASA again decided it was cheaper to build Endeavor from existing frames than to refit Enterprise.

[Radar Chief]

Originally Posted by qabbaan

Enterprise never actually flew in space. It was the test model and was supposed to be fitted for orbital flight but due to later design changes, it never was.

Correct. The Enterprise was basically the alpha phase, proving the concept.
It was the summer of ’89 and I think it was Discover that I saw riding piggy back on a 777 at Biggs Field in El Paso. They flew in and stayed about a day then flew back out for Florida.
I was surprised at how small it actually is, it was dwarfed by the 777 it was hitching a ride on.

[whoman69]

Originally Posted by Radar Chief

Correct. The Enterprise was basically the alpha phase, proving the concept.
It was the summer of ’89 and I think it was Discover that I saw riding piggy back on a 777 at Biggs Field in El Paso. They flew in and stayed about a day then flew back out for Florida.
I was surprised at how small it actually is, it was dwarfed by the 777 it was hitching a ride on.

It only carries six people and cargo.

[Radar Chief]

Originally Posted by whoman69

It only carries six people and cargo.

I know but when you see it on tv attached to the liquid fuel tank and solid rocket boosters, on the pad ready to launch it looks much bigger. Particularly when it’s climbing into the sky on a column of smoke, with the associated ground shacking rumble, it looks like a beast.
It’s not until seen in relation to something I knew the size of that its true scale struck me as small.

[whoman69]

Originally Posted by Radar Chief

I know but when you see it on tv attached to the liquid fuel tank and solid rocket boosters, on the pad ready to launch it looks much bigger. Particularly when it’s climbing into the sky on a column of smoke, with the associated ground shacking rumble, it looks like a beast.
It’s not until seen in relation to something I knew the size of that its true scale struck me as small.

They were planning on having a landing at Ft. Campbell when I was there, but at the last minute they changed it back to Edwards. That would have been something to see.

[JD10367]

So, let me get this straight: it went up and down into frickin' space numerous times, riding rockets, and yet was damaged by a New Jersey barge pilot. Kudos.