yee@ames.arc.nasa.gov (Peter E. Yee) (10/07/88)
STS-26 DISCOVERY STATUS REPORT -- THURSDAY, OCT. 6, 1988
DRYDEN FLIGHT RESEARCH FACILITY
Members of the STS-26 Shuttle processing team continue to
ready the orbiter Discovery for its return trip to Kennedy Space
Center.
Since Discovery was towed to the Mate/Demate Device on
Monday, workers have drained the left over liquid oxygen and
liquid hydrogen reactants from the orbiter's fuel cell storage
tanks, performed post-flight inspections and installed ferry
flight fittings.
Today, final preparations are underway for installing the
protective tail cone over the three main engines. The tail cone
is now on a tall platform and later today will be positioned in
place. Power checks of the Shuttle Carrier Aircraft are planned
today.
Discovery will be mated to the 747 on Friday in preparation
for a Saturday departure. The time of departure will be a few
minutes before sunrise and a refueling stop is planned at Kelly
Air Force Base in San Antonio, Texas before continuing the one-
day journey to Kennedy Space Center.
Pilots of the 747 for the first leg of the ferry flight,
from Dryden to Kelly, are Joe Aligranti and Ken Haugen. Flight
engineers are Louis Guidry and Steve Feaster. For the second leg
of the journey, from Kelly to Kennedy, the 747 pilots are A.J.
Roy and Arthur Beall, and the flight engineers are David Hill and
Glenn Pingry.
If all goes as planned, the orbiter and 747 should touchdown
at the Kennedy Shuttle Landing Facility before sunset on
Saturday, Oct. 8.