Anyone remember the Space Shuttle's UK Tour.

[thatone1967]

Just talking to a work colleague about the Space Shuttle's UK tour, then I realised it was 1983 and suddently feel really old!

I "bunked off" of work at the local CO-OP and travelled to Stansted to see it, IIRC it flew down the Thames and over Heathrow too?

[Eric Mc]

It was routing to and from the 1983 Paris Air Show. The Orbiter was Enterprise which, of course, never flew in space.

[Carnage]

Me! I was four, my dad took me to see it and took a picture of me standing underneath the nose of the transporting 747.

[MKnight702]

Me, we went to Stanstead to see it. No idea where the photos went though. IIRC we were on the way back from somewhere and Dad decided to detour, not sure if they knew in advance though.

[rufusruffcutt]

Yeah I remember it flying over the back garden on the downwind approach to Manchester airport.

Not my picture, but its just how I remember it.

[Eric Mc]

On the ground at Stansted

[thatone1967]

Eric Mc said:

On the ground at Stansted

Your picture Eric?

I was there... maybe we met..

[Eric Mc]

Nope - nicked off an aviation site.

I was still in Ireland in 1983 and couldn't really justify a trip to the UK just to see the Space Shuttle.

[Yertis]

Eric Mc said:

It was routing to and from the 1983 Paris Air Show. The Orbiter was Enterprise which, of course, never flew in space.

Of course, technically, nothing ever "flies in space"...

[Eric Mc]

Yertis said:

Eric Mc said:

It was routing to and from the 1983 Paris Air Show. The Orbiter was Enterprise which, of course, never flew in space.

Of course, technically, nothing ever "flies in space"...

Look, just because you are posting in a forum populated by uber-pedants doesn't mean that you can be pedantic.

[strudel]

Eric Mc said:

On the ground at Stansted

I've always wondered something about this setup - what are it's flight characteristics? The centre of gravity must be in the wrong place and I'm fairly sure the 747 was never designed as a biplane!

[Eric Mc]

strudel said:

Eric Mc said:

On the ground at Stansted

I've always wondered something about this setup - what are it's flight characteristics? The centre of gravity must be in the wrong place and I'm fairly sure the 747 was never designed as a biplane!

Flies quite well, apparently. The combination weighs much the same as a 747 fully loaded with passengers and their baggage and the fairing over the tail of the Shuttle smooths out the airflow at the back. The additional fins on the tailplane restore any longtidudinal control lost because of airflow over the main tailfin being blocked.

[Simpo Two]

A sort of jet/rocket version of Maia + Mercury = Short Mayo:



And Ju88 + Fw190 = Mistel:




And one for Eric to make!

[anonymous-user]

I remember seeing it at Stansted. I would have been about 8 at the time.

I have a pen with the 747/shuttle on it somewhere. I think it has the date on it aswell.

[mattdaniels]

Eric Mc said:

The Orbiter was Enterprise which, of course, never flew in space.

More details here:

http://science.ksc.nasa.gov/shuttle/resources/orbi...

[Eric Mc]

It was originally intended that Enterprise would be refurbished for full spaceflight capability. However, it was assessed that it would be cheaper and easier to modify the Static Test Airframe OV-099 rather than Enterprise (OV-101). OV-099 became Challenger.

[Jonny671]

I wasn't born until 7 years after it flew over

Would have loved to have seen it though!

[Eric Mc]

Jonny671 said:

I wasn't born until 7 years after it flew over

Would have loved to have seen it though!

Enterprise?

Enterprise only ever flew independently as part of the glide tests carried out in 1977.

[Jonny671]

Eric Mc said:

Jonny671 said:

I wasn't born until 7 years after it flew over

Would have loved to have seen it though!

Enterprise?

Enterprise only ever flew independently as part of the glide tests carried out in 1977.

Well, I mean on the 747. I assume thats what happened? I didn't know they done a "Tour of the UK" with it, but 1983 I wasn't born until 1990

[Eric Mc]

Jonny671 said:

Eric Mc said:

Jonny671 said:

I wasn't born until 7 years after it flew over

Would have loved to have seen it though!

Enterprise?

Enterprise only ever flew independently as part of the glide tests carried out in 1977.

Well, I mean on the 747. I assume thats what happened? I didn't know they done a "Tour of the UK" with it, but 1983 I wasn't born until 1990

Enterprise was taken aloft on the back of the 747 for the first time in 1977. The first few flights were "captive" flights in that she remained firmly attached to the 747. After the combined 747/Shuttle was found to behave reasonably well, then some more captive flights were held with the streamlined shroud around the rear rocket nozzles removed. Once those flights had been conducted safely, the Shuttle flew three separation flights where it was released from the 747 and allowed to glide safely down to the desert landing strips at Edwards Air Force Base.
The pilots for these captive and glide tests were Fred Haise (ex Apollo 13), Ken Mattingly (ex-Apollo 16), Gordon Fullerton and Dick Truly. Truly, Fullerton and Mattingly remained with NASA long enough to ride the Shuttle into orbit.

Here's a picture of Enterprise just after separating from the 747 in one of the 1977 glide tests -

Edited by Eric Mc on Saturday 9th October 09:55