yee@trident.arc.nasa.gov (Peter E. Yee) (05/17/89)
KSC SPACE SHUTTLE PROCESSING REPORT FOR - TUESDAY, MAY 16, 1989
STS-30 - ATLANTIS (OV 104) - MATE/DEMATE DEVICE
Atlantis and the 747 Shuttle Carrier Aircraft arrived at
KSC's Shuttle Landing Facility at about 8:09 p.m. last night. The
cross-country ferry flight that began Saturday took longer than
planned because of adverse weather in the flight path.
Yesterday, the SCA departed Biggs Air Force Base, El Paso,
Texas, at 10:02 a.m. EDT and landed at Dallas/Ft. Worth
International Airport about 11:30 a.m. EDT. The aircraft left DFW
at about 1:45 p.m. EDT and landed at Warner Robbins Air Force
Base near Macon, Ga. at about 4:15 p.m. EDT. After assessing good
weather into Florida, managers decided to complete the ferry
flight yesterday evening.
Atlantis left California atop the 747 Shuttle Carrier
Aircraft on Saturday afternoon. Due to adverse weather in the
flight path, the aircraft and crew remained at Biggs Saturday and
Sunday night.
The orbiter Atlantis has been demated from the 747 and will
be towed to OPF bay 2 this morning where access stands will be
moved in place around the orbiter.
STS-28 - COLUMBIA (OV 102) - OPF BAY 1
Yesterday, the payload bay doors were closed to allow tile
work. Work to ready the main engines for flight is continuing
this week including leak checks and installation of heat shields.
Tests of the interfacing connections between the orbiter and the
orbital maneuvering system pods are underway.
Other scheduled work includes preparing the ammonia boilers
for flight, functional testing of the waste containment system
and functional testing of the crew module hatch.
Columbia is scheduled to remain in bay 1 until late June
when it will be transferred to the VAB for mating with its
external tank and solid rocket boosters.
STS-33 - DISCOVERY (OV 103) - OMRF
Discovery was rolled from Bay 2 to the Orbiter Modification
and Refurbishment Facility last week to make room for Atlantis'
return. Power down work scheduled today includes hooking up the
orbiter's environmental control system to ground systems and
erecting access stands around the vehicle. Discovery will be
transferred to bay 1 when Columbia is moved to the VAB in June.
STS-30 SOLID ROCKET BOOSTERS - HANGAR AF
All segments were disassembled over the weekend and are
being loaded onto railcars for shipment back to Morton Thiokol
this week. The aft skirts and nose cones have been turned over to
USBI for refurbishment.
STS-28 SOLID ROCKET BOOSTERS - VAB
The right forward assembly was mated to the stack Saturday.
Leak tests of the field joints and closeouts are scheduled this
week. Mating of the external tank and boosters is scheduled to
begin a week from today. The boosters, tank and mobile launcher
platform will be transferred from high bay 1 to high bay 3 the
last weekend of May.
STS-34 SOLID ROCKET BOOSTERS - RPSF
Technicians are building up the right and left aft boosters
in the Rotation Processing and Surge Facility. The nozzle is
being installed on the left aft booster and the external tank
attach ring is being installed on the right aft booster. Stacking
is scheduled to begin in mid-June.
EXTERNAL TANK - 27
External tank number 27 is scheduled to arrive at the
turning basin Thursday. This tank is currently scheduled to be
used on the STS-34 Galileo mission. The tank will be offloaded
from the barge Thursday and Friday and moved into a checkout cell
in the VAB.