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From: rlevasse@hawk.ulowell.edu (Roger Levasseur)
Newsgroups: sci.space.shuttle
Subject: Re: Dumb question #652
Message-ID: <967@swan.ulowell.edu>
Date: 2 Jun 90 16:17:08 GMT
References: <376.26477BB6@ofa123.FIDONET.ORG> <24785@netnews.upenn.edu> <	<3286@rodan.acs.syr.edu>> <SHAFER.90May14220318@skipper.dfrf.nasa.gov> <1990Jun2.014849.287@ultra.com>
Sender: news@swan.ulowell.edu
Reply-To: rlevasse@hawk.ulowell.edu (Roger Levasseur)
Organization: University of Lowell, CS Dept.
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In article <1990Jun2.014849.287@ultra.com> shj@ultra.com (Steve Jay) writes:
#>In <SHAFER.90May14220318@skipper.dfrf.nasa.gov> shafer@skipper.dfrf.nasa.gov (Mary Shafer) writes:
#>
#>>I went down to the runway for an SCA/Shuttle takeoff once and it
#>>wasn't exactly zooming off into the wild blue yonder.  It's pretty
#>>heavy and, being a older 747, a little lacking in thrust compared
#>>to the later models.
#>
#>When I lived in Tucson, the SCA/Shuttle landed at Davis Monthan a couple
#>of times.  About a week before the Challenger accident, it came through
#>carrying the shuttle from the previous mission.  The University Computer
#>Center (where I worked) is directly under the approach path, less than 5
#>miles from the runway.  Seeing the 747/shuttle first hand, regardless of
#>the number of times you've seen pictures, is a breathtaking site.
#>
#>Anyway, some friends of mine went to the end of the DM runway to watch
#>the takeoff.  According to them, "wasn't exactly zooming off into the
#>wild blue yonder" is an understatement.   More like, "gosh, is that
#>thing going to get off the ground at all??!!"
#>

After the shuttle landed at White Sands in 1982, the SCA reportedly
used 12,000 feet of runway before getting airborne.  Friends in
Alamogordo at the time said it was still flying pretty low when
it flew over the city.

       -roger