Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!mailrus!ncar!noao!asuvax!enuxha!kluksdah
From: kluksdah@enuxha.eas.asu.edu (Norman C. Kluksdahl)
Newsgroups: sci.space.shuttle
Subject: Re: Shuttle from Vandenberg
Summary: Shuttles
Message-ID: <47@enuxha.eas.asu.edu>
Date: 17 Feb 89 22:42:15 GMT
References: <919@cs.rit.edu> <1989Feb11.234744.20258@utzoo.uucp> <2481@phred.UUCP> <1989Feb17.164009.3238@utzoo.uucp>
Organization: Arizona State Univ, Tempe
Lines: 21

In article <1989Feb17.164009.3238@utzoo.uucp>, henry@utzoo.uucp (Henry Spencer) writes:
> In article <QXycoxy00VQD1FwUYy@andrew.cmu.edu> pv04+@andrew.cmu.edu (Philip Verdieck) writes:
> >I was under the impression that Enterprise was a mockup as well,
> >a nice piece of propaganda to satisfy the huge mail-in to name a
> >shuttle "Enterprise". 
> 
> I fear your memory fails you:  Enterprise flew the glide tests, and it was
> definitely meant to be a spaceworthy orbiter at the time it was built.

My memories indicate that Enterprise was a prototype vehicle for the purpose
of glide testing, and possibly integration testing (although I have been
known to have periodic bit errors in memory :-) :-) ).  Seems to me that
Challenger (OV-99) was originally constructed as an airframe test article,
and later finished as a flight-worthy vehicle.  It also seems to me that
Enterprise was never intended for spaceflight.


Norman Kluksdahl              Arizona State University
            ..ncar!noao!asuvax!enuxha!kluksdah

standard disclaimer implied