tech article 2/12/16

 

      How Space shuttles ride piggyback on a plane.

The museum is throwing a huge party for this 747, including astronauts, skydivers and fireworks -- all centered around Independence Plaza, where a replica space shuttle called Independence sits on top of the airplane.

Visitors will be able to go inside both the 747 and the Independence to explore exhibits and artifacts from the space shuttle era.

Museum exhibits manager Paul Spana worked with a Boeing historian who provided photos detailing 747 interiors to help maintain accuracy.

"Aviation enthusiasts will be excited at the opportunity to see a 747 closer than they would at any airport," Spana said.

But the flight deck will be off limits to visitors, at least during the first year, when crowds would have a hard time maneuvering the spiral staircase to the cockpit.

A few of the pilots and flight engineers from this airplane also are expected to be on hand for Saturday's ceremony.

From the early 1980s to the end of the shuttle program in 2011, the 747s were called upon to ferry shuttles that landed in California back to launch facilities in Florida, flying low and slow, at 13,000-15,000 feet high and about 285 mph.

NASA 905 flew internationally, too, carrying the shuttle Enterprise to England and the Paris Air Show in 1983.

So, how did the 905 lift all that weight? For one thing, NASA stripped the plane's main cabins clean.

It was pretty much the cockpit and a big empty shell. That was it. No seats, galleys, lavatories, bars. No passengers, luggage, food, water, cargo. Built for maximum power, maximum lift.

NASA changed the original 747 design by adding vertical stabilizers to the plane's tail to improve directional stability.

It also did a lot of testing on how to attach the spacecraft to the airplane to achieve the best aerodynamics.

RELATED STORY: How the 747 can lift all that weight

NASA's choice of the 747 to ferry the shuttle is just one more example of the importance of the aircraft.

Nicknamed the Jumbo Jet when it entered commercial service in 1970 with Pan Am, it was the world's first wide-body airliner, offering unprecedented seating capacity and long range.